Jenova's Vessel
by Yusuke-Uchiha
Summary: When she wakes up she is in a lab tank. After years stuck inside she is finally released. After being taken to see an old man and given some clothes, she is handed a baby with silver hair and told "Keep him safe and make him strong".
1. Chapter 1

*Okay this is the Final Fantasy 7 fan fic I've been working on. I've spent the past year writing this much of it, so it may take me a while to finish it completely. I've decided to upload what I've finished so far, but it's not even close to being finished yet. Depending on what everyone thinks of it I will either keep it on the site and finish it, or I will take it off of the site and just finish it for me. If no one likes it there's no sense in keeping it on the site so give me some feedback peoples. Enjoy*

Jenova's Vessel

She was awake but could not open her eyes; they felt like lead. Her body felt wet and she couldn't tell why. She could hear what sounded like boiling water around her. Water? Water is wet. She felt something brush past her arm. One of the bubbles? Bubbles? Bubbles are made of water? She managed to force her eyes open and her mind was flooded by what she saw. All around her, everything was a green color. As she looked around the room she began to realize the situation she was in. She reached her hand out and felt something rounded and hard. Glass?

She moved her hand up to her face and felt something hard and lumpy over her nose and mouth. She felt her heart begin to beat quickly. What was wrong? What was she feeling? A loud beeping sound began to ring in her ears. The beeping matched her heart beat. A heart-rate monitor?

A woman in the next room heard the beeping and bolted into the room. Her eyes widened when she saw her specimen awake and responsive. She approached a machine in front of the tank and pushed a red button with the word 'Emergency" written above it. The water began to drain out of the tank and she watched her specimen fall to the bottom of the tank.

Footsteps came from behind the woman and she turned around, "Vincent! She's awake!"

Vincent approached her and looked up at the tank, "Lucrecia...who is she?"

Lucrecia pushed a second button on the machine and the glass began to recede. She then took hold of the soaking wet, nude woman and laid her on the floor.

"Vincent! Get a blanket from my bedroom next door."

Vincent nodded and ran from the room. He returned seconds later with a blue, wool and satin blanket. Lucrecia wrapped the woman up in the blanket and lifted her up off of the ground. Vincent looked at the woman's face and chest. There were thin, green, glowing lines running horizontally under her eyes and two running vertically over each of her collar bones. Between her breasts was a large, diamond shaped spot, also glowing green.

"Isn't this wonderful, Vincent!"

The woman looked up at Vincent and said, "V-V-Vin...Vinc...Vincent?"

Lucrecia's eyes widened, "She's talking! Amazing!"

"Lucrecia, what are those green things on her skin?"

Lucrecia hung her head almost as if ashamed of herself, "They are...pieces of Jenova."

Vincent gasped, "Lucrecia!"

The woman opened her mouth again and said, "Lu-Lucr-Lucrecia?"

Lucrecia smiled brightly, "Yes. I'm Lucrecia. Do you know what your name is?"

The woman shook her head.

Lucrecia took one of her hands and whispered, "Rei. Your name is Rei."

Rei parted her lips and whispered, "Rei?"

Within seconds, Rei could feel her mind flooding with images. Simple things like grass, houses, and children flashed into her mind. The information was coming at such a fast rate that her head felt as it it would explode. Her hands flew to her head and she began to whimper. Her fingers entwined in her long white hair and she began to pull it hard.

"So...many...words. Too...many...images."

Her enitre body began to convulse in Lucrecia's arms. Lucrecia's grip on her tightened.

"Vincent! Quickly! Help me get her back in the tank! She's not ready to be out yet!"

Holding onto the powerful woman proved to be a problem. It took every ounce of their strength put together to raise Rei back into the tank. Lucrecia punched a few numbers into the keyboard in front of her, and the glass raised around Rei. Her hand moved over to a bright green button and she pressed it. The water from before flooded the inside of the glass and fully submerged Rei once again. Almost out of instinct, Rei picked up the mask she'd been wearing before and placed it over her face herself. Her body stopped convulsing and she floated to the top of the tank. The last thing she saw before her eyes fell shut was Lucrecia walking towards the door.

She woke up very seldom after that, and when she did wake, it was only for seconds at a time. She could only remember a few of the instances, however. When she woke up the first time, she saw Lucrecia collapse on the floor of the lab. Her heart rate quickened, and she began to struggle with the machine until she saw Vincent run into the room. She knew Vincent would take care of Lucrecia, so she closed her eyes and drifted back into sleep.

There were also a few instances where she awakened to find Vincent and Lucrecia in the lab together simply talking to each other about things she couldn't understand. One thing she noted in particular was the look in Vincent's eyes. Every time he would look at Lucrecia, his eyes would seem to glow with a happiness Rei didn't know existed. But there was pain along with the happiness. She couldn't help but feel a bit envious towards Lucrecia. To have Vincent look at her like that must have been amazing.

She woke up once again to a sight she wished she had not seen. Through the green, she could see Vincent standing before a middle-aged man with black hair and thick eye glasses. Though her hearing was muffled by the water, she could hear Vincent shouting at the man, demanding to know what he'd done with Lucrecia. Instead of answering Vincent, the man pulled a silver pistol out of his white lab coat. Rei's heart sunk into her stomach when she watched the man squeeze the trigger on the gun, shooting a bullet right into Vincent's chest. Once again, she began to struggle, trying to escape from the tank, but she felt sleep begin to take her. As much as she tried to fight it, she was unable to and she succumbed to the darkness.

* * *

><p>A bright light crashed against her eyelids, and she flinched at the sudden disturbance. She could no longer feel the familiar water and brushing of bubbles against her skin. She felt a softness under her body that she'd never felt before. When she finally opened her eyes, she immediately squinted against the pale light of the room combined with the white ceiling. When she tried to move her hands, she was able to lift them with no trouble. So she sat up and looked around. She squinted again at the white walls. All around her were medical gurneys, and when she looked down, she realized she was on one too. Her face flushed red when she noticed she was not wearing any clothes.<p>

She flinched at the strange feeling and mumbled, "What's this I'm feeling?"

She thought that maybe by covering her body, the feeling would go away. She hung her feet over the side of the gurney, and they touched the cool, linoleum floor. Her whole body shivered for a moment, and she placed all of her weight onto her feet. She wobbled a bit before steadying herself by placing both hands on the gurney. She peeled the white sheet away from the gurney and tied it around her chest like a dress.

Her heart leapt into her throat when she heard a sudden creaking sound. Her senses heightened, and she turned towards the sound. A door was slowly opening. Her nerves calmed until she saw the person who was behind the door. Black hair, glasses, aged face, malicious grin. Her mind flashed to the exact moment Vincent had been shot, and her eyes flared. His murderer stood before her with no one but a few scientists protecting him.

He approached her and reached a hand out towards her, "I see you've awakened my dear. It's amazing that you are already able to stand on your own. Come and we will get you some clothes to wear."

She shook her head fiercely and stepped away from him, "No. I'm not going anywhere with you."

"Why ever not?"

"You killed Vincent! I saw you! I'm not following a murderer!"

The man let out a sinister laugh, "I may be a murderer but soon you will be too. Now come."

"No!"

The man motioned to the scientists behind him and the two men began to move towards Rei. She shook her head and backed away.

"Stay away from me."

One of the scientists reached into his coat pocket and revealed a syringe. In it, was a clear liquid. She continued to back away, but hit the wall behind her. As the scientists inched closer to her, her anger grew. The scientists gasped when the green lines on her face and chest began to glow. Her eyes shot towards them and glowed the same color. The two men began to back away from her, but she held her hand out in front of her. When her palm began to glow white, the head scientist flinched.

"Get away from her you fools! Right now!"

Before the other scientists had a chance to move, the white light in Rei's palm shot towards the three of them, killing the two in the front and wounding the one behind them. Not wishing to spend another second in the room, she ran past the incapacitated scientists and into the hallway. Her surroundings only heightened her anxiety when she glimpsed more and more white lab coats. The eyes from the owners of the coats seemed to burn holes through her flesh. She ran to the first door she set eyes on and tore it open. She dove into the room, shutting the door behind her.

Looking around the small room, her eyes went instantly to a corner. Unable to find solace anywhere else, she ran to the corner and fell onto her bottom, grasping tightly to her knees. Trapped. That's the only way she could think to describe the helpless feeling. Not only had she awoken in a strange place, but she had no memories beyond Vincent and Lucrecia. The pain of not knowing who or what she was tore her apart. Was she human? Maybe. She looked like one. She shook her head profusely and buried her face into her knees, trying to shut out the world.

"H-Hello?" came a soft voice.

Rei flinched at the sound and her entire body trembled. Small patters across the floor indicated footsteps. Her heart raced when she realized the footsteps were becoming louder. Curious as to the source, she raised her head from her knees and looked towards the direction of the sound. A silhouette stared back at her and her trembling escalated. Light flooded over the room and assaulted her unadjusted eyes, causing her eyelids to squint tightly. When her pupils un-dilated, her eyes fell instantly on the figure before her. She wanted to laugh at herself for being so terrified when she found the figure to be only a small boy.

When she looked into his blue eyes, she didn't see the same coldness that had come from the scientists. Curiosity and wonder were held in his young face. She didn't flinch when he offered her his hand.

"Here, let me help you up."

She shakily reached out her hand to the child. For being so small, the blonde-haired boy was able to pull her from the floor with little trouble. She kept her eyes on him as he stood in front of her.

"My name is Lazard," he said, "What's your name?"

Rei grinned at his kindness and replied, "Rei."

"How old are you, Rei?"

Rei hung her head and trembled slightly, "I-I don't...know."

"Well you technically have the body of a ninteen-year-old girl," came a voice from behind Lazard.

Rei gasped and backed into the corner once again. When the man behind the voice stepped into the room, Lazard smiled brightly.

"Father!"

"Hello son. I see you've met the newest member of the Shinra family."

He turned his face towards Rei and grinned, "There's no reason to be frightened. I won't harm you I promise."

Rei let her guard down and stepped away from the corner. She stood next to Lazard and stared curiously at the man before her.

"Hello, Rei. You can call me President Shinra. Me and my workers will be your caretakers from now on. Dr. Lucrecia Crescent, your former caretaker, has disappeared."

Rei hung her head, "Disappeared? How does a person just disappear?"

President Shinra shrugged his shoulders carelessly, "I have no idea, but none of that matters now. Now you must come with me. You need some clothes, and you need to be informed of your purpose here."

Given no other choice, Rei nodded, "Okay."

President Shinra turned from Rei and walked slowly from the room. Lazard tailed close behind him and motioned for Rei to follow him. Trusting the child more than the man, Rei smiled and happily followed after Lazard.

The president lead Rei through many winding hallways. Along the way she passed a large window. When she peered inside, she noticed a scientist in a white lab coat holding what looked like a green solid with a pair of tongs. She didn't think anything of it and continued to follow the president to wherever he was leading her.

Eventually they came to a large white door with the word 'President' printed on it in gold letters. Rei heard the sound of keys jingling as the president unlocked the enormous door. He pushed it open with one of his hands and signaled for Rei to enter with the other. She stepped past him slowly, still not entirely trusting the strange man. As if trying to make her less uncomfortable, Lazard skipped up next to her and took hold of one of her hands. Rei peered down at him and grinned at the boy's sentiment.

She heard the door close behind her and the president walk past her. A large brown desk was erected before her and the chubby president took a seat behind it.

"Your new clothes are over in the corner behind that curtain. You'll find twelve suits. That should suffice for now. You may go behind the curtain and change into whichever outfit you like. Then come back out here and take a seat in one of the chairs in front of you."

The president lifted a finger and pointed to the curtain he spoke of. Rei turned in the direction he was pointing and found a blue curtain drawn. Though she still did not trust him, she saw no other choice than to do what he said. She moved over to the curtain and pulled it open. Behind it she found twelve slim jump suits, varying in color. Her eyes were instantly drawn to the grey one. She grinned and pulled the curtain closed behind her.

She untied the sheet from her chest and let it fall to the ground around her feet. She stepped over the sea of white and took the grey jump suit off of the coat rack. When she looked closer at it, she saw there was a long zipper that started at the neck and ran all the way down to the left thigh.

'Easy to put on.'

She pulled the zipper down and pulled the jump suit over her body. She zipped it up just high enough to cover her, but she left it low enough so that the green diamond on her chest was still visible. She didn't have a mirror so she had to assume she'd put the garment on properly. She opened the curtain and walked back into the office as she'd been told. She stepped up to one of the black chairs in front of the desk and sat down.

"All right, Rei. I suppose you've figured out by now that you are not like other people."

"Yes."

"You are a scientific specimen created in a laboratory. The body you have is that of a nineteen-year-old girl who died recently. We took her body back to our labs and ran tests on her. She was the perfect candidate for an experiment we'd been hoping to try."

"What was that?"

"Do you know who Jenova is?"

Rei heard the name and ran it through her mind, hoping it would trigger something. Images flashed before her eyes of a lab tank. Inside the lab tank was an incapacitated figure with green skin and long white hair. On the figures head was a sign that read 'Jenova'.

"She's a being that you have been keeping in your labs?"

"Yes, but that is not all. She is an alien life form from another planet. She crash landed here centuries ago and now she is in our possession. She is very powerful."

Rei was beginning to become tired of the conversation and asked, "What does she have to do with me?"

"Have you looked at yourself in a mirror, Rei?"

Rei shook her head.

The president pulled open a drawer in his desk and reached his hand inside of it. His hand emerged holding a small hand mirror. He turned it towards her and she glimpsed herself for the first time.

A gasp escaped from her lips at the sight of herself. Her long white hair and small bits of green skin reminded her of the 'Jenova' she had just envisioned.

"Wh-What am I?"

The president lowered the mirror and crossed his arms over his chest, "You are as close to being Jenova as anyone has ever been. Your body has been infused with pieces of Jenova's body. You carry her cells and some of her power."

Though it was shocking news, Rei was able to accept it relatively easily, 'It's not like I have any idea about anything else I've ever been.'

"So, what do you want from me?"

The president stood from his desk and walked over to the wall to his left. A small red button pulsated. He brought his hand over it and pushed it lightly.

"Because you have pieces of Jenova's body, you have natural talent for fighting and magic. We need you to train out soldiers starting with this child."

The door to his office opened to reveal a brown haired woman in a lab coat. In her arms, she held what looked like a blue bundle of blankets. She slowly approached Rei and held the blue bundle out to her.

Rei looked at the president and said, "I don't understand. What am I going to do with these blankets?"

The president grinned, "Look closer, Rei. It's not just blankets."

Rein looked back at the bundle and saw it move. Curiosity overcame her and she moved a corned or one of the blankets. When she did, a small face greeted her with an adorable smile.

"A baby?"

The president nodded, "Yes. I would like you to raise him?"

Rei peered at the child in confusion, "Raise him? I don't understand?"

The president crossed his arms as he tried to think of how to explain it to her.

While the president was having his brain storming session with himself, Rei continued to gaze upon the small boy. He had bright green eyes and the most beautiful silver hair.

"Rei."

She tore her eyes away from the boy and replied, "Yes?"

"I want you to keep him safe and make him strong. If you do that, he will be your son."

Rei gazed back at the president and answered, "If I keep him safe and make him strong then he's my son?"

The president nodded, "That is your job for now. Raise this boy and try to make him more powerful than you."

Rei looked back at the child and held out her arms to the woman. The woman placed the baby in her arms and turned away. It was obvious she was returning to the labs so Rei ignored her. She was far too enthralled by the little boy in her arms to care for much else anyway.

"What is his name?" Rei asked.

The president moved back to his desk and replied, "Sephiroth."


	2. Chapter 2

*20 years later*

"Mother. There are new recruits arriving today."

Rei turned towards the voice of her son and smiled, "I know, Sephiroth."

From inside the large room, Rei could hear the announcements over the intercom systems. 150 new troops were arriving that day. Sephiroth stood at the widow to his mother's room and watched as men poured into the building. Rei was uninterested and simply sat on one of the three black couches in the middle of her room.

"Honestly, why does President Shinra feel the need to hire so many new men every day?" Rei asked, mostly to herself.

Sephiroth, now a full foot taller than Rei with silver hair down to his thighs grinned, "Maybe he's hoping you'll find some students who can actually handle your training."

Rei scoffed a bit, "Not likely."

A tap at the door broke Sephiroth's gaze and he turned away from the window, "Who is it!"

"It's Lazard."

Rei stood from the couch and replied, "It's open."

The door knob turned and the door opened, revealing a much taller Lazard. Glasses were perched on his face and his hair had grown down to his shoulders. He wore a grey, striped suit. He walked into the room and approached Rei.

"Hello, Rei."

She grinned slightly and said, "What's up?"

He held out his hand towards her and she took it with no hesitation. He lead her over to the window of her bedroom and pointed down to the large group of men entering the building.

"Do you see the two men over in the corner? There's one with a red jacket and the other is carrying a large sword."

Rei peered down into the crowd and saw the men Lazard was speaking of, "Yes, I see them."

"They're new recruits as well, but I've been told they did exceptionally well in their preliminary training. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'd like you to take them under your wing."

Rei eyed him intently, "Are you serious? What makes you think they can handle my training? Even the biggest and meanest men have run away from my training in tears."

Lazard chuckled as he remembered the last recruit he had brought her. He stood a full three feet higher than her and probably weighed about 10 of her. He was so sure that the man would be able to handle the training, but he'd only been in the room with Rei for twenty minutes before he ran away with urine trickling down his leg.

Even with the memory trying to give him doubts, Lazard replied, "I know. But I believe they may have a chance. Just give it a shot. What do you have to lose?"

Rei sighed heavily, "Fine I'll try to train them. Do you know their names?"

Lazard reached into one of the pockets of his suit and pulled out a slip of paper. He looked down at it and replied, "The one in red is called Genesis, and the one with the huge sword is called Angeal."

Rei nodded and motioned for Sephiroth to follow her. She walked past Lazard and out of the bedroom. Lazard was not far behind her, ranting on about the skills the two men showed.

"Lazard, you know I'm not interested in what the men have done before. I'm only interested in what they can do now. Don't worry so much. If they can be trained I will train them."

Lazard smiled and stopped in his tracks, no longer wishing to bother her. Rei and Sephiroth walked downstairs into the room with the new recruits. Sephiroth spotted the two men immediately and lead Rei to them.

When Rei first approached them, they almost looked amused.

She ignored their ignorance and asked, "You're Genesis and Angeal right?"

The two men nodded carelessly.

Rei sighed and said, "All right then. Come with me."

Rei said no more. She turned from the men and began to walk towards her chambers. At first, the two men did not move. Being ordered around by such a small woman seemed a bit strange. Sephiroth noticed they were not obeying and shot a glare at them.

"Did you not here what she said? Come on, now!"

Being a bit more intimidating, Sephiroth convinced the men to follow. Rei lead them up to her chambers and opened the door. They followed her inside and Sephiroth closed the door.

"Okay, come sit down. We have things to discuss," Rei ordered.

The men did not disobey this time for fear of Sephiroth and followed her to the couches. Rei and Sephiroth sat across from the two men who took seats beside one another.

Rei crossed her arms and began, "My name is Rei and this is my son, Sephiroth."

The two men looked sharply at Sephiroth and then at her, both of them baffled by how she could possibly be his mother looking as young as she did.

"Don't even bother trying to figure out why she looks so young. If you prove to be worthy students, she may explain it to you."

Rei grinned at her son's sentiment, "Anyway. You two were said to have been quite accomplished during your preliminary training. All I can say is you must have been the best out of the bunch that just came in because you were sent to me."

Angeal crossed his arms, "What do you mean?"

Not wishing to drag out a long explanation, Rei simply said, "Only the best are sent to me, but even they do not always succeed. Of all of the training you could possibly go through, mine will be the most grueling."

Genesis, still on a power high from the training replied, "No problem. There's nothing you can make us do that me and Angeal can't take."

Sephiroth scoffed, "You are clueless. Do you know how many students my mother has?"

Genesis shook his head, "No. So what?"

Sephiroth grinned maliciously, "One. She only has one student and that's me."

The two mens' eyes widened at the statement.

Rei sighed, "Now do you see? Even the strongest men have tried to undergo my training. They have all failed. I'm not a drill sergeant. Drill sergeants will seem like saints once you've trained under me. Now tell me, do you think you can handle it?"

Angeal and Genesis looked at each other, asking each other questions with their eyes. Genesis was the first to say, "Yeah. I think I can handle it."

Angeal said nothing, but simply nodded his head in response.

Rei stood instantly from the couch and said, "Okay then follow me."

The two men stood from the couch and followed behind their new teacher. Rei lead them to a large door in the corner of her room with the word 'Training' painted on it in red letters. She pushed a small green button on the wall next to the door and a key pad appeared in front of her. She pushed a few buttons and the grey door opened.

Inside was a dome-shaped room made entirely of metal and steel. The floor was stone and iron. She lead the three men into the room and closed the door.

"First things first. I have to see if you two are even good enough to be my students. There will be two tests. If you can pass one, you will make it to the other. If you can pass both, I will train you. If you fail, you will go to normal training. Got that?"

Angeal nodded, but asked, "What are these tests?"

Rei grinned, "Simple. Your first test is you must land two blows on me. It doesn't matter what you hit me with. It can be your weapon, one of your body parts, or magic, but you must hit me twice a piece."

Genesis sneered, thinking the first test will be a breeze, "Okay so what's the second test?"

Sephiroth sneered, "You must land one hit on me."

The two men smirked and Angeal asked, "How long do we have to do this?"

Rei crossed her arms and replied, "Until you collapse with exhaustion or give up. Me and Sephiroth have all day to do this so there's no rush. But you may want to do it as quickly as possible because the longer it take you, the less chance you'll have of success."

The two men continued to smirk, still unaware of the threat posed to them by the woman and her son.

"So...who's first?" Rei asked.

Sephiroth rolled his eyes when the two men proceeded to play Janken. Three times in a row the men played and when Genesis held out a rock and Angeal some scissors, the victor was determined. Angeal slumped his shoulders and walked over to the door. He pressed his back against the wall and proceeded to eye Rei intently.

'Going second won't be too bad. I'll get to study her movements and find her weak spots.'

Rei walked to the center of the domed room and held her hands out to her sides. Her fingers stretched out and her palms faced Genesis. Out of a long sheath partly concealed by his long red coat, Genesis drew a thin, but sharp, red sword. Rei smirked with wonder at the cherry-colored blade.

"Exactly how much damage can you take if I hit you with this thing?" Genesis wondered.

Rei broke her smirk and replied, "Just don't decapitate me or chop any of my limbs off and I'll be fine."

Genesis eyed her questioningly, "Anything else is okay? Are you serious?"

Rei sighed, "Listen, I'm a lot tougher than I look. You can cut me, stab be, slice me open, whatever. It doesn't matter. I don't want you holding back just because you're afraid you might hurt me. You wouldn't hold back against an enemy who was trying to kill you would you?"

Genesis shook his head, but said nothing.

"All right then. Don't worry about hurting me. I may not be as great of a physical fighter as Sephiroth, but my magic is strong enough that I can heal pretty much any injury you give me, besides decapitation and severed limbs of course."

Genesis' grin returned to his face and he knelt down into his battle stance.

"Let's see what you've got, Genesis."

* * *

><p>"Lazard!" came the voice of President Shinra.<p>

Lazard didn't move and replied, "Yes? The door is open."

The door to Lazard's room opened slowly and his father walked in. His eyes fell on his son, who was standing before a large window, peering down onto something that he apparently found to be very interesting.

"What are you staring at?"

Lazard motioned for his father to come and look as well. Normally Shinra didn't listen to his son, but curiosity got the better or him. He moved to the place next to his son and looked down out of the window. His eyes widened and he grinned.

"So she's taken on new students has she?"

"Yes, father. I believe these two may make it. So far Genesis has hit her once, but Rei rarely makes the same mistake twice."

Shinra huffed, "We'll see what happens. If she wasn't such a drill sergeant we'd have more powerful soldiers like her."

Lazard grinned, "Yes, but we told her that she was to make her students stronger than herself. If anyone is to be stronger than her, they'll have to be forced to work more than humanly possible. Your scientists made sure of that when they made her."

Shinra nodded, "I suppose you're right."

Lazard and Shinra gasped when they glimpes Genesis land his second blow on Rei. His sword ran itself straight through her lower back.

* * *

><p>Rei doubled over in pain from the blade jutting out of her stomach. She hit the ground on her knees and began to breath heavily. Genesis stood behind her, not entirely sure of what to do.<p>

"Well done, Genesis, "Rei mumbled, "You pass."

Genesis wanted to shout his celebrations, but he was halted when Rei said, "Now will you kindly remove this sword from my back?"

He didn't argue and wrapped his fingers around the handle of his sword. He jerked it from her back and she winced in pain.

"Thank you. Now you can go stand over there. It's Angeal's turn now."

Genesis' eyes widened, "But sensei-"

"Stop. You don't get to call me that yet. You're still not my student. Listen, don't worry about me so much. I know I look like a frail little petite woman, but I'm not. Well...I am a petite woman, but I'm not frail."

Genesis grinned and walked over to the wall while Rei held her hand out in front of the wound. Her hand glowed green and the wound sealed itself up.

Angeal was impressed with her healing abilities, but refused to let this opinion be known. He approached Rei and drew his sword from its large sheath.

"Are you ready, Angeal?"

Angeal smirked, "I should be asking you that. You're the one who was just stabbed."

Rei rolled her eyes and replied, "Shut up and fight."

Seconds before Rei and Angeal charged each other, Genesis moved to the wall next to Sephiroth in order to avoid being hit with a sword or a spell. When he noticed the un-concerned look on Sephiroth's face he smirked.

"Aren't you even the slightest bit worried? I just passed the first test and I know Angeal will too."

Sephiorth huffed, "Don't let your slight victory make you cocky. You may have landed two blows on her, but I can tell how exhausted you are. Your friend may pass, but he'll be the same as you are now."

Genesis wanted to argue further, but he sensed that an argument with Sephiroth would not be easily won. So he remained silent and moved his eyes to Angeal and Rei. Angeal was fast, but every swipe of his sword seemed to pass through Rei rather than miss her. Sephiroth looked on, unimpressed by Angeal's fighting skills.

"He'll have to do far better than that if he's to pass his second test. So will you, Genesis."

Genesis ignored Sephiroth's comment and simply said, "She looks much faster from here. When I was fighting her myself I guess I didn't notice as much."

"That's because she didn't use as much speed with you."

Genesis' eyes widened, "What!"

"Angeal is putting up a better fight than you did so she's having to move only about two second faster. Don't worry about it too much though. The gap in the strengths of the two of you is not that great. With the proper training, you could easily surpass him."

Gensis hung his head, chastising himself for falling behind Angeal, 'He always was better at everything.'

A crack echoed throughout the room when Angeal's fist connected with Rei's left rib cage. Rei doubled over in pain, but did not cry out. As soon as Angeal heard the crack, he backed away from Rei.

Rei released a few heavy breaths and mumbled, "Nice job. One more hit now."

Angeal looked on as her hand glowed green and the broken ribs pulled themselves together.

* * *

><p>President Shinra looked down upon the fight and grinned slightly, "The young men have proven to be quite good so far."<p>

Lazard nodded, "Yes but can they pass the second test? The second one will be much harder."

"I guess we'll see won't we?"

Lazard kept his eye on Rei, studying her movements intently, 'Rei, why are you struggling with him so much? I've never seen you like this before.'

Shinra noticed the puzzled look on Lazard's face and asked, "Is something wrong, Lazard?"

Lazard shook his head, "Nothing. It's probably just me."

* * *

><p>Sephiroth's eyes widened when Angeal rushed behind Rei and brought his sword down across her back, leaving behind a long, deep gash. Blood began to pour from the wound and Rei collapsed face down onto the floor. With the wound as deep as it was, Sephiroth's concern was piqued.<p>

"Mother!"

He rushed over to her and knelt down, "Are you all right?"

Rei picked her face up from the ground and smile brightly at Sephiroth, "Of course. Hurts like a bitch, but I'm fine. Would you mind helping me stand up? I think he might have damaged my spine."

Sephiroth chuckled slightly at his mother's carefree attitude and took hold of one of her arms. He lifted her up from the ground and brought the arm over his shoulder.

"Okay now don't move, Sephiroth."

She shakily reached her other hand around and touched the bottom of her neck. Once again, her palm glowed green, but the wound sealed itself up slower this time. Once the wound was healed, Sephiroth released her arm and she stood fine on her own. She turned towards her potential students and grinned brightly.

"Congratulations gentlemen. You're half way there."

Angeal and Genesis exchanged smirks and thumbs-ups before Genesis asked, "So let's get on with the rest of it."

Rei shook her head in annoyance, "Oh please. I know as well as you do that you're both exhausted. Go take a breather for about an hour and come back. You can start then."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Though the men were new recruits, they'd put up a better fight than Rei had expected them to. For the first time in a while, her muscles had ached bad enough that she'd had to go to see one of the doctors. After she was given a small dosage of pain medication, she walked slowly towards her room. She wanted to watch the fights that were about to go on between her son and her would-be students, but she wanted to do it somewhere she could sit down. Plus the last thing she wanted was to get in Sephiroth's way. When she opened the door to her room, she was greeted by Lazard standing in front of the window that connected her room to the training room. Behind the glass, she could see Sephiroth and Angeal taking their stances. Lazard heard her presence and turned towards her. The look on his face concerned her.

"What's wrong, Lazard?"

Lazard crossed his arms tightly, "You know perfectly well what's wrong. You let them both win didn't you?"

Rei's eyebrows ran together and she sharply replied, "Absolutely not! What are you a moron! I would never _let_ someone defeat me!"

"You were struggling with the two of them. That's not like you. You normally fight with such grace and perfection, but those two were making you sloppy."

"That's because they're good! You're the one who thought they had potential, and that's why they were sent to me in the first place! Why would you put such confidence in them and then doubt their abilities!"

Lazard smirked and chuckled quietly, "I thought so."

Rei eyed him in confusion, "What are you saying?"

"You like them. I wanted to see what you would say if I tried to insult the abilities of your soon-to-be students. You defended them, so you must like them."

Rei's face went red and she turned sharply away from Lazard, "You moron."

Lazard couldn't stifle his laughter any longer and burst out loudly. Rei wanted to smack him, but she held herself.

'Maybe he's right. Maybe I do like them. But it won't matter unless they pass the next test.'

Lazard had ceased his laughter and approached her from behind. She turned towards him and grinned.

"It's your birthday in a few weeks isn't it Rei?"

Rei hung her head, "Ugh. Don't remind me. I already feel old enough as it is."

Lazard shook his head in response, "Oh shut up. Technically you're only 25."

Rei smirked, "That's where you're wrong. You have to tack a 19 onto the end of that 25, so that makes me almost 45. Ugh."

Lazard was about to argue further, when a soft grunt came from the inside of the training room. Rei rushed towards the window and gasped loudly. Across Sephiroth's left arm was a small, but deep cut. A small smudge of blood stained the tip of Angeal's massive sword. Through heavy pants, a smirk painted Angeal's face at his victory. Rei pushed past Lazard and quickly entered the training room.

Angeal was the first person to say anything to her and mumbled, "I *pant* did it*pant* sensei."

After the words left his mouth, he lost all strength he had to remain on his feet and he collapsed face-first onto the floor. Rei grinned and reached towards the wall behind her. She pushed a small blue button and a quiet alarm sounded. Only moments later, a team of doctors came rushing into the room with a stretcher. They lifted Angeal carefully onto it and carried him out of the room.

"Be careful with him!" Rei shouted after them, "He's my student now! If you break him you'll be hearing from me!"

The doctors didn't answer her, but all of them took her words seriously as they rushed Angeal to the infirmary.

She turned towards Sephiroth, "Come here."

Sephiroth did as he was told and approached her. She reached her hand out towards his injured arm and healed it quickly.

"Do you know what happened, Sephiroth? Do you know why he was able to hit you?"

Sephiroth chastised himself in his mind and mumbled, "Because my hair got in my way."

"Okay. You know the problem, so fix it."

Rei reached into one of the pockets of her gray jump suit and revealed a large, black hair tye. She held it out to Sephiroth and he took it quickly. He took hold of his massive silver locks and tied them up into the hair tye. Once his hair was sufficiently out of his way, he once again took his battle stance, awaiting Genesis to start the next bout.

Rei grinned and took hold of Sephiroth's arm gently, "Remember this for the next time you're in the field."

Sephiroth did not say anything and simply nodded, keeping his eyes trained on Genesis.

Rei released Sephiroth's arm and turned towards Genesis, "You won't have the same opportunity to catch Sephiroth off guard as Angeal did. So think about what you can do to improve your chances, Genesis."

Sephiroth was so surprised by his mother's comment that he took his eyes off of Genesis for a moment to give her a questioning look. In the half a second Sephiroth turned his head, Genesis ran at him. Before Sephiroth had time to turn his head back, Genesis had raised his sword over his head and brought it down over Sephiroth's left shoulder, leaving a small but deep gash in its wake. Sephiroth's eyes widened and he flashed a hateful glare at Genesis before raising his sword in retaliation. Seconds before he could bring the sword down, Rei stepped in front of Genesis. Seeing his mother standing before him, Sephiroth halted his sword only inches from her face.

When he looked at her with questioning eyes she said, "You lowered your guard, Sephiroth. You can't let anything, not even the voice of your closets companions distract you on the battlefield. If you do, you pay the price as you can very well see."

Sephiroth lowered his eyes to the floor, and brought his sword away from Rei's face. He sheathed it quickly and turned away from her.

"You're right, mother. I apologize."

Rei grinned and walked around to the front of Sephiroth, "Don't beat yourself up, Sephiroth. We all make mistakes. There's no way to make yourself perfect."

Sephiroth raised his eyes and flashed Rei a small grin,"I know. I just..."

"I understand. Go take a rest. I can see that you're still a bit tired."

Sephiroth did not answer and walked silently from the room. Rei turned her gaze onto Genesis.

"Well what you did wasn't exactly honorable, but you did what you were told. You pass."

Genesis grinned brightly, and was about to voice his thanks, but stopped when he saw the serious look on his new sensei's face.

"Just remember, Genesis. A person who is willing to do anything to get what they want will almost always wind up losing everything in the long run."

Genesis nodded, "Yes, sensei."

"Okay, go on. Lazard will show you to your room. We will commence training tomorrow since Angeal is out of commission."

Genesis bowed slightly and walked from the room. Rei followed him out and watched as he walked away with Lazard. She caught a hint of silver in the corner of her eye and turned towards it. Sephiroth stood in the corner of her bedroom with his arms crossed tightly across his chest.

"Sephiroth?"

He didn't answer her, continuing to chastise himself for his mistake. Rei smiled lightly and approached her son.

"Sephiroth stop being so hard on yourself. So you made a mistake. It's not that big of a deal."

Sephiroth shook his head, "Not in training. But what if that had been a real fight? I would have been severely injured or worse."

"But it wasn't a real fight. I've told you before. Most fighters win solely on skill. However, luck is a small part of fighting too."

Sephiroth grinned slightly, "How is it that you always know what to say?"

Rei rolled her eyes, "I'm your mother. I know everything. Now off with you. Just because Genesis and Angeal get the rest of the day off doesn't mean that you do."

Sephiroth chuckled quietly, "Very well."

Rei watched as Sephiroth walked past her into the training room. She knew that there was no reason for her to watch him. He always did his training properly, so she left him to his work and left to find Genesis.

'I guess I owe the two of them an explanation.'

She found Genesis' room and tapped on the door. She heard light footsteps, and saw the doorknob turn. Genesis pulled open the door and grinned slightly when he saw her.

"Yes, sensei?"

"Come with me. I owe you and Angeal an explanation for my appearance."

Genesis pretended to be uninterested, but in reality he was very curious as to why his sensei looked younger than himself. He followed her to the infirmary where Angeal had regained consciousness and was sitting up on his own. Upon seeing them walk through the door, Angeal smiled brightly.

"Hello, Angeal. How are you feeling?" Rei asked.

Angeal shrugged his shoulders apathetically, "Nothing I can't handle."

Rei grinned and approached the bed. Two small chairs had been placed next to the bed, so she and Genesis took seats on them.

"I know you two were both shocked when you met me, and I told you Sephiroth is my son. I also know that you guys probably want an explanation. So I'm here to give you one. You are my students now, so you get to know my secret."

Angeal and Genesis listened intently as Rei began, "These green areas on my body are pieces of Jenova."

The two men gasped at her statement, unsure of whether she was joking or telling the truth.

"I know. You probably think I'm crazy, but it's the truth. I look this young because I'm physically 19 years old. The Jenova cells keep me from aging."

Angeal pushed his shock to the back of his mind and asked, "So then Sephiroth really is your son?"

Rei hung her head, "In every way that counts, yes. I didn't physically give birth to him because I can't bear children, but I've raised him since he was a baby. I was told on the day Shinra gave him to me that I was to make him stronger than myself and to keep him safe. So that's what I've done for the past 20 years.

"Now you two are my students. My job is to make you stronger than me and to keep you safe. Now that you are under my supervision, I will give my life if it means keeping you from harm. That's my job as a Shinra employee, as a teacher, and as a mother."

Angeal and Genesis were in awe at the utter dedication shown by their teacher. Rei noticed the looks on their faces and sighed heavily.

"Okay now that that mushy moment is out of the way let's talk about training. I know you just went through a rough patch today, Angeal, but training is still going to start first thing in the morning. You're both gonna be up bright and early at 4 a.m. to begin your first day of training. So I suggest the two of you get plenty of sleep because you're going to need it."

Angeal and Genesis smiled brightly as their teacher left the room.

*three weeks later*

Her eyelids were assaulted by a piercing light. When she opened them, her eyes fell instantly on her clock; it read 3:45. She groaned loudly, cursing whoever woke her up.

"Mother, wake up."

Sephiroth's voice punched through her drowsiness and awakened her enough to raise her head from the pillow. When she looked up at the ceiling, she squinted her eyes tightly, trying to shut out the bright light.

"Sensei, c'mon. Wake up."

The voice of Angeal was the second to pull her from her wooziness. She turned her face towards the voices and could see two black blurs and a red blur. Genesis was there too.

"What are you three doing in here? It's not even 4 o clock yet."

When her vision finally cleared, her eyes were overwhelmed by a multitude of colors. In each of her students' hands were three balloons of a variety of colors. In Sephiroth's left hand was a tray. On the tray looked like homemade breakfast foods; eggs, ham, pancakes, sausage, biscuits and gravy all adorned the silver tray. In Angeal's right hand was a box wrapped in brightly-colored red and blue paper. Similarly, in Genesis' hand was a blue and gold box.

Sephiroth grinned slightly and said, "Happy birthday, mother."

Her eyes widened as she realized the purpose of all of the bright colors, food, and presents.

Genesis came forward and held out his blue and gold box, "Each of us decided on a present separately. This is mine."

Rei reached her hands out and took the small present. Not wishing to appear rude by opening it slowly, she removed the paper quickly. Under the paper was a red-covered, hard-back book. Pressed into the cover was the word 'Loveless'.

"I just found this play at the store a few days ago. I read it and I thought it was an amazing story, so I thought you might enjoy it."

Rei opened it to the first page and read out loud, "Infinite in mystery is the gift of the goddess."

Genesis blushed lightly, "That's my favorite line."

Rei smiled, "I can see why. It's beautiful. Thank you, Genesis."

Genesis' face reddened a little and he stepped back to make room for Angeal. Angeal held out his hand that held his colorful box. Rei took it quickly, curious as to what Angeal had brought her. When she peeled the paper away, she found a welcoming sight. A photograph of herself and her three students stared back at her. She stood in the front with her arms crossed, Angeal stood to her right with his sword gripped in his hands, Genesis stood to her left with a small grin on his face, and Sephiroth stood in the back with his left hand on Rei's shoulder.

Rei smiled even brighter and said, "Thanks, Angeal. I'd almost forgotten about this picture."

Angeal scratched the back of his head shyly and backed away. Sephiroth stepped forward and placed the silver tray on her lap.

"This is only part of my gift, mother. The other half you'll get after you finish your breakfast."

Rei watched as Sephiroth reached into his coat pocket and pulled out four slips of tan paper. He handed one of them to Rei and she took it gingerly. Her eyes hit the paper and she gasped aloud.

"It's an all expenses paid pass to Costa de Sol. And don't even try to mention work, mother because you haven't had a day off this year. So you're taking a break on your birthday at least."

Rei stared back at Sephiroth and held back tears, "I love you guys."

Sephiroth turned his face away slightly and winked inconspicuously, "Of course Genesis, Angeal and I will only be going as your bodyguards."

Rei shook her head and sighed slightly, "Bodyguards huh?"

Genesis grinned maliciously and said, "What President Shinra doesn't know won't hurt him."

"Now finish your breakfast sensei," Angeal said, "So we can leave."

Rei wanted to argue, but she could see the determination in the eyes of her son and her students. So she smiled and said sarcastically, "Fine, but I don't think turning 45 is anything to celebrate."

Her three students sighed almost at the same time and pulled up chairs beside her bed.

Sephiroth was the first to sit down and say, "We're going to sit here and make sure you eat your breakfast and don't try to run off to avoid the trip."

Rei hung her head in defeat, "I can't get anything past you can I?"

Sephiroth shook his head, "Now eat your breakfast. Lazard prepared it for you."

* * *

><p>"Come on Mother. We're already here so you may as well come out."<p>

Sephiroth had taken his mother to a clothing store in order for her to buy a new swimming suit for her vacation. She'd picked out a small, grey two piece that tied around the back of the neck. However, when she put the bathing suit on, she found that she didn't like how much skin it showed.

"No way! I've never worn anything this small before! I don't know how I let you talk me into this!"

"What are you so worried about? You have the body of a nineteen-year-old woman, and you're more fit than most of the women here."

The other women shopping for swim suits instantly turned their heads and glared at Sephiroth intently. He turned towards them and glared back.

"You all had better glare at someone else besides my son before I poke your eyes out of your skulls," came Rei's voice from behind Sephiroth.

The women in the store took one look at the bits of Rei's green skin and instantly averted their eyes away from her and Sephiroth. Sephiroth turned back towards Rei and smiled maliciously.

"I thank you for your assistance ladies. I didn't think I was ever going to get her to come out."

All of the women who had previously glared at him, all flashed him smiles. Rei was not smiling.

"You know, you're not too old for me to bust your ass."

Sephiroth grinned and held out his hand, "Come on, mother. You have some relaxing to do."

Rei once again wished to argue, but held herself, knowing that Sephiroth meant well. Outside of the store, Genesis and Angeal were waiting to see their sensei in her new swim suit. As soon as she came out of the store, her two students noticed the look of self-consciousness.

"Don't worry, sensei,"Genesis said kindly, "It looks good on you."

"You're just saying that to make me feel better."

Angeal looked at Sephiroth, and Sephiroth nodded slightly.

"Well what if I tell you it looks good on you too? Will you believe Genesis then?" Angeal asked slyly.

Rei rolled her eyes and said, "Okay fine. I'm just not used to things like this. The last time I took a vacation it was to the infirmary for three weeks because one of my fingers was severed."

Sephiroth came up behind her and placed a gentle had on her shoulder, "That's the point mother. You've never had a real vacation in your whole life, and you need to have some fun for a change."

Rei hung her head, "Alright alright. So what do I do first?"

* * *

><p>"Come on, sensei. I know you hate the water, but I promise you'll enjoy this."<p>

"No way, Genesis! You're not gonna get me in that thing."

Rei looked upon the small, bubbling hot tub with malice in her eyes. Every little bubble reminded her of the bubbles she'd seen when she first opened her eyes.

"Sensei, if you're not in that hot tub before Sephiroth gets back he's gonna have my head on a stake."

"Well then tell Vincent Valentine hello for me when you return to the planet."

Genesis knew she was only joking, but her protests were giving him a migraine. He sighed heavily and turned his back.

"Fine. I guess I've done all I can do."

Rei grinned maliciously, thinking she'd convinced her student to drop the subject of the hot tub. However, fate proved to be a cruel mistress when she felt herself being pulled from behind by four gloved hands. Before she could utter a sound, her entire body was submerged under the pleasantly hot water. The hands released themselves from her shoulders and her head emerged from the warm liquid. She turned her face towards the source of the hands and found Angeal and Sephiroth standing on the very edge of the hot tub chuckling at her. She was going to leap out of the water and begin their well-deserved beatings when she felt something begin to crash against her lower back.

"What the hell is that?" She exclaimed, "There's something hitting my back!"

Sephiroth knelt down next to the tub and said, "Calm down, mother. It's just a jet stream. It's meant to make you feel relaxed."

"Well it's not! How do I shut it off?"

"It's not making you feel relaxed because you're too worried about the water sensei," Angeal said calmly, "If you'll just stop worrying for a few minutes you might find it quite relaxing."

Genesis walked to the other side of the hot tub and motioned for Angeal and Sephiroth to follow him, "We'll go "stand guard" in the lobby. Yell if you need us."

Rei hung her head and mumbled, "You're all gonna do an extra three hours of training when we get back."

Her three students grinned at her and left the room silently. After they were out of sight, she let herself lean back against the side of the tub. She had to admit, the jet stream was doing wonders for her sore back.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Apart from checking on their sensei every once in a while, Sephiroth, Genesis, and Angeal had virtually nothing to do. They'd ordered some food and had lunch, but the three friends were relatively bored. Unfortunately for them, entertainment can come at a bad price.

Rei had finally managed to relax herself in the warm water so much that she submerged her head completely under, hoping the warmth would help clear her mind. However, when she opened her eyes, she was in for a not so pleasant memory. Through the water, she glimpsed a middle-aged man approaching a young, black-haired man who looked to be in his twenties. The older man wore a white jacket and the young man a black suit. She looked on in horror and nostalgia as the older man drew a small, silver pistol from his jacket and pointed it directly at the young man. He squeezed the trigger without hesitation and put a bullet right into the young man's chest. When she saw the young man hit the ground, she didn't see him as a stranger, or even as a civilian.

'Vincent!'

Her instincts took over and she leapt swiftly from the water. She reached out her hands and grasped the older man's neck. She pushed him roughly to the ground and placed just enough pressure on it to knock him unconscious. When she was sure he was incapacitated, she turned her attention to the injured young man. While she was moving over to tend to him, Sephiroth, Angeal, and Genesis ran into the room only to find that their job had been done for them.

"Take that jackass out of here while I try to get this wound healed you guys."

The three men did not argue and Sephiroth took hold of the older man. He lifted him up onto his left shoulder and quickly carried him out of the room, Genesis following him.

Angeal knelt down next to Rei and the injured man and muttered, "Sensei, what can I do?"

"Nothing right now, Angeal. Just let me handle this."

Angeal could tell by the distressed tone in her voice that she was quite upset about the man being injured. Why he couldn't say, but he wasn't about to argue with her.

The man was still conscious and in severe pain when Rei reached two of her fingers into the hole in his chest. The man cried out in pain and began to thrash against Rei's hands. She placed her other hand on the man's left shoulder, trying to hold him in place.

"If you wanna live, you're gonna have to be still."

The man could not here her through the excruciating pain in his chest, and he continued to thrash about. Angeal moved behind the man's head and took a tight hold of his shoulders. He pressed the man firmly against the ground, and held him in place. Rei raised her eyes to Angeal's and nodded. In the split second that she made eye contact with him, Angeal saw tears streaming down her face.

"Sensei?"

"Not now, Angeal. I'll explain later."

She began to moved her fingers around inside of the wound, trying to fish out the bullet. If it would have been a through and through, the wound would have been simple to treat, but with the bullet lodged so far in his chest cavity, the wound was much more severe. She pushed her fingers a little further into the wound and finally felt the bullet under her fingernails. She carefully spread her fingers, and grasped the bullet tightly.

"Okay, I've got hold of the bullet. Now Angeal, you have to make sure to hold him completely still because if he moves, I could lose my grip on it."

Angeal nodded, and tightened his grip on the man. The man became unable to struggle against Angeal's grip and finally laid still despite the pain. Rei began to slowly retract her fingers, pulling the bullet along with them. Behind her, she heard a door open, and quick footsteps approaching her.

"William! What in Odin's name happened!"

Rei looked to the right of her and saw a woman, probably around the same age as the man knelt down beside him. Tears covered the woman's face and neck as she looked upon the wounded man.

"Whoever you are, tell me what happened here!" she shouted at Rei.

"Calm down, girl. He's been shot in the chest. I'm in the process of removing the bullet so I can heal the wound. So just give me some space and he'll be fine."

Though she was slightly angered by Rei's disregard for her feelings, the woman moved away nonetheless. Rei tightened her grip on the bullet as much as she could and pulled her fingers out swiftly, a small amount of blood squirting onto her face. The woman behind her gasped aloud at the sight of William's blood. Rei did not waste a moment, and placed her hands directly over the wound. Her hands glowed their normal green color, and the wound began to pull itself back together. The woman looked on in awe as the man's heavy breathing returned to a calming steady pace, and the color returned to his previously paled face. He opened his eyes, and they fell instantly on the woman beside Rei.

His eyes widened and he exclaimed, "Whilelmina!"

The woman threw her arms tightly around the man's neck and exhaled heavily, "Oh William. What happened! What brought this on?"

William moved his eyes away from Whilelmina and onto Rei and replied, "I saw that man following her around."

He pointed to Rei, and Rei's face went red.

"He had been following her around all day. I only noticed because we are both staying in this hotel. I even passed by her room earlier and he was standing outside of it. So I thought I'd confront him and ask him to lay off before one of her big body guards noticed his stalking and a bunch of trouble was caused. I wasn't expecting him to have a gun on him."

Rei hung her head, "So this is all because of me?"

Whilelmina and William shook their heads simultaneously and William replied, "No way. It's not your fault. He was-"

His sentence was interrupted when he noticed the blood covering Rei's hands and face.

"He was a creep. And besides, from the look of your hands and face, you were the one who wound up saving me. Thanks."

Whilelmina grinned and said, "Yeah. My brother gets in over his head sometimes. Thank you so much for saving his life."

Rei smiled lightly and answered, "Don't worry about it. Helping you helps me too."

William looked at her questioningly and asked, "What do you mean."

Rei didn't want to offer a lengthly explanation, so she simply said, "Redemption."

Angeal stepped to the front of Rei and held out his hand, "Come on, sensei. Let's get you out of here."

William started at the sound of the word 'sensei' and impulsively exclaimed, "Sensei! How old are you?"

Whilelmina reached out her fist and punched him in the shoulder, "William! You never ask a woman that. It's because of things like that that you don't have a girlfr-"

"45."

After hearing her age, Whilelmina was so shocked, her words became jello in her mouth. She began to look Rei up and down, trying to find some kind of sign of her age. There was none. While Whilelmina was shocked, William didn't seem to care at all.

William pushed himself up off of the ground and stood in front of Rei, "Hey that doesn't bother me at all. Why don't you let me take you out to dinner as thanks for saving me."

Rei smiled at his sentiment, but shook her head, "I'm sorry William, but you're not him."

William gave her another questioning look and asked, "What do you mean, "you're not him?""

Rei offered no answer and turned to Angeal, "Come on, Angeal. I think I've had enough of this place. I want to go home."

Angeal nodded, "Okay sensei. Let's go."

Despite William's cries after her, Rei continued to walk, ignoring the man's pleads.

* * *

><p>The four Soldiers returned to Shinra, all of them weary from the previous day. Sephiroth and Genesis had had to accompany the older man to the Costa de Sol police precinct and answer a bunch of questions that they had no business answering. Before they left the hotel, William once again had approached Rei and begged her for a date. She had of course turned him down, but he persisted until they finally left Costa de Sol. Each time, Rei offered the same answer, "You're not him."<p>

When Rei walked into her bedroom, she was welcomed by a wide array of colors and smells. All throughout the room were bouquets of flowers, and on the table was a small basket of purple apples. Genesis was the first to notice the apples and ran straight towards them.

"Dumbapples!" he exclaimed, "I'd asked director Lazard to get some for you, sensei, but I didn't think he'd actually travel all that way to get them."

Rei approached the table along side Genesis and asked, "What are dumbapples?"

Genesis wasted no time in replying, "They are a special kind of apple that only grows in my home town. I haven't had one since I came here."

Rei looked again into the basket and counted four dumbapples. She reached her hands into the basket and pulled out three. She handed one to Genesis, and tossed the other two to Sephiroth and Angeal.

"Now get outa here, you three. You all have training tomorrow."

Her three students smiled brightly and exited the room silently. She reached into the basket and pulled out the remaining dumbapple. She raised it to her lips and sunk her teeth in. The juice from the apple was sour when it first passed her lips, but sweetened after it sat on her taste buds for a few seconds.

'Not bad.'

*short I know, but I need to do a time skip now and it would be a little silly to skip this much time in the middle of a chapter*


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

*Five years later*

Rei stood outside of the dastardly Hojo's laboratory, waiting for him to finish the tests he was running over her three boys. She'd always hated when he ran the ridiculous tests because it made them miss out on hours of training. On top of the stress of her students missing training, she was told a new recruit was to take the test to become her student.

'Argh! Why does something like this have to come up when my boys are in the lab?'

She hadn't been given much information in the lad other than he was in his late teens to early twenties and he had spiky black hair.

"They could have at least told me his name if he's to be taking my test," she mumbled to herself.

"I guess you're talking about me?"

The sudden response to her complaint shocked Rei and she jumped a bit. Her eyes moved towards where the voice had come from and a young man matching the description she'd been given stood before her. Behind him, down the hallway stood Lazard, grinning maliciously.

Rei rolled her eyes in irritation and replied, "So it would seem. You'll have to excuse me if I seem a little grumpy. They informed me that you were to be taking my tests on the same day that the rest of my students are on medical leave for testing. They've been in the laboratory with that bastard Hojo for the past three hours, and it's driving me mad."

The young man smiled lightly and replied, "Yeah I understand. I'm in no hurry. From what all of the other Soldiers have told me, your test is nearly impossible. To tell you the truth, I'm terrified."

His response was such a shock that Rei almost had to ask him to repeat his statement. Never before had she had a would-be student admit to being afraid of the tests.

"Well you've already got a better chance than most of the people who have taken my tests."

The man looked at her questioningly and said, "What do you mean?"

Rei grinned and replied, "You're the first person to actually admit to being afraid of my tests. Frankly I'm surprised. Most young men come in with the foolish ideology that they are better than everyone and my tests are going to be a breeze. They learn very quickly that they are wrong. It's refreshing to meet a would-be student that isn't under the mistaken notion that they are invincible."

"That's cold, sensei," came Angeal's voice from behind.

Rei was overjoyed to hear the voice of her student and turned towards him, "Hey, Angeal. How did the tests go?"

Angeal shrugged his shoulders, "Same old same old."

Genesis and Sephiroth appeared from behind Angeal, neither one looking very happy.

"Hey you two. Is everything all right?" Rei asked.

Sephiroth nodded and answered, "I just can't stand these tests. They take up too much time."

Rei rolled her eyes and said, "Yeah I hear ya."

Behind Sephiroth, Genesis seemed to be lost in thought, so Rei approached him and poked his arm, "Hey Genesis. Are you all right? You seem upset."

Genesis shook himself out of his trance and faked a smile, "Yes, sensei. Everything is fine."

Rei could sense that Genesis was holding something back, but she did not wish to press him any further. She turned her attention back to her would-be student.

"Okay young man, you'd better tell me your name. Because if you become my student I'm gonna at least need to know that."

The young man flashed a bright smile and replied, "I'm Zack Fair."

* * *

><p>"Okay Zack. The rules of the tests are simple, but first I need you to do something."<p>

Zack was listening, but he was so enthralled by the arena that Rei had in her living quarters. He'd never seen such a training room, and it was quite fascinating.

"Zack! Pay attention!" Rei exclaimed.

Zack instantly shut out his fascination with the room and nodded, "Yes sensei. What do you need me to do."

Rei sighed heavily, "For one, you don't get to call me sensei yet. Ma'am will suffice. Two, you need to pick an opponent. You have to face me regardless, but you must pick your second opponent out of my three students."

"Pick my opponent?"

"Yes. To pass the first test you must land two hits on me. For the second, you must land one blow on one of these three behind me. I won't tell you which one is the strongest because you'd have a bias as to who you would pick. So right now, pick your second opponent."

Zack swallowed heavily and looked past Rei at the three men. All of them looked menacing, so he wasn't sure as to which one to pick.

'Geeze. They all look so powerful. How am I even gonna have a chance? Oh well. If I lose, I lose, but I'm sure as hell not gonna back down.'

Zack reached out his left hand and pointed his index finger in the direction of Angeal.

"I'll fight him, sen-er-ma'am."

Rei did not reply and simply motioned for Genesis, Angeal, and Sephiroth to stand in the corner.

"Okay, there are some rules here. You can hit me with whatever you see fit, but if you need to hit me with your sword, just don't decapitate me or sever any of my limbs. Anything else is fine."

She expected Zack to argue with her and ask if she was sure, but he did not. Instead he simply took his stance and drew his sword.

"Is magic allowed, ma'am?"

Rei smiled, "Absolutely. Now come on. Let's see what you've got."

* * *

><p>When Zack brought his sword down over Angeal's left shoulder, Rei had to admit that she was impressed. It had taken Angeal much longer to land a blow on Sephiroth. From her place in the corner of the training room, she smiled brightly and clapped her hands.<p>

"Congratulations Zack. You pass."

Zack's eyes widened, and he almost shouted with joy, but he held himself, not wishing to seem immature. Rei motioned for him to follow her, and she walked silently out of the training room.

Before the door closed she said, "Go get some rest, Angeal. Genesis, Sephiroth start training level 3, and don't break it this time."

Angeal called after her, "Sensei, may I stay? I'm not that tired, and I'd like to continue training."

Rei stopped at the door and replied, "Sure. If that's what you want."

Zack followed Rei out into her living quarters, and they both took seats on the couch.

Rei leaned back against the couch cushion and stated, "No doubt you have questions Zack. You're probably wondering how those three can possibly be my students when they all look so much older than me."

Zack had pretended to not be interested, but he was curious as to why his sensei was so young, "Yeah I suppose so."

"Well, you are my student now, so I will tell you my secret."

* * *

><p>*Three weeks later*<p>

Her sleep was abruptly interrupted by the annoying ring of her alarm clock. She rolled over and saw the flashing red 3:45 painted in the dark. She reached her hand out and silenced the irritating ringing. When she sat up in the bed, she immediately felt an overwhelming sense of dread. Her chest felt heavy, and her eyes were watering. The last time she had felt this way was when she'd watched Hojo shoot Vincent, so the feeling was not very welcomed. She tried to brush it off as stress, and stood from the bed. She felt along the wall for her light switch and flinched when the bright light assaulted her eyes.

She could hear bustling in the room next to hers, indicating that Sephiroth was already awake.

'At least I won't have to wake him up.'

She moved over to her closet and pulled out one of her many gray jumpsuits. She didn't waste time seeing which one it was, and slipped it on quickly over her nude body. When she opened the door to her room, she came face to face with Sephiroth.

"Morning mother."

"Morning," she mumbled weakly.

"Is everything all right?" Sephiroth asked.

Rei shrugged her shoulders and replied, "I don't know. I've just got a really bad feeling about today."

"Well then maybe we should skip training today," came the voice of Angeal from behind her.

Rei grinned and turned towards him, "Nice try, Angeal. You don't get out of training just because I've got a bad feeling. You two go get ready while I wake Zack and Genesis up."

She approached Zack's door first and kicked it three times, "Zack wake up! Come on! No time for slacking off! You've got five minutes to get your ass out here!"

She pressed her ear up against the door and heard bustling from inside. Satisfied that he was getting ready, she moved over to Genesis' door. Rather than kick his door, she simply tapped on it a few times, knowing that Genesis was a much lighter sleeper than Zack.

"Come on Genesis! Get up! I know you've been having trouble sleeping lately, but you still have to train!"

When she pressed her ear up against his door to listen for movement, she heard nothing. Her mind went from annoyed to suspicious within two short seconds. Genesis never slept in, and she never had any problems waking him up. Brushing it off as a symptom of his recent insomnia, she pounded on the door a little harder.

"Genesis! Come on! Wake up! Training starts in five minutes!"

Still, she heard nothing from beyond the door. Behind her, Zack had opened his door and approached her.

"He's still not awake, sensei?"

Rei shook her head, "This isn't like him. Something must be wrong. He must be sick or something because if Genesis was able, he would come to the door."

"Well then maybe we should just let him sleep, sensei."

Rei sighed, "I'll let him sleep if he's sick, but I'm gonna make sure he's sick first."

She wrapped her fingers around the door knob and shouted, "Genesis! You'd better be decent because I'm coming in!"

She did not wait for a response, and turned the door knob quickly. When she pushed the door open, everything inside of her sank to the ground. The bed was empty, the window was open, and the closet was picked clean. She looked over on the nightstand next to the bed, and found a picture frame placed face down. Though her body felt like lead, she managed to pull herself over the the nightstand and take hold of the picture frame. She raised it up, and found a copy of the same picture Angeal had given her for her birthday. At the sight of the picture, all of her suspicions were confirmed. Her knees buckled from underneath her, and she hit the ground with a soft thud. Zack was not too far behind her, and ran to her immediately.

"Sensei!"

He knelt down behind her and took hold of her shoulders. The second he felt the contact, his ears were assaulted by the sound of a loud scream. Rei's hands flew to her head and tears began to stream down her face. Zack kept a tight hold on her in order to keep her from hurting herself. Genesis' face kept flashing through Rei's mind over and over. All of their days of training, the day he went with her to Costa de Sol, and the day they'd sat down together and read 'Loveless'. All of these things sent Rei's mind into a roller coaster of guilt and shame.

Sephiroth and Angeal had since heard her melancholic cry and had raced to the room to see what had happened. The scene before them was one of tragedy and despair. Rei had let herself fall against Zack and was now clinging to him like a lost child. Her face was pressed tightly against his chest and his uniform was absorbing the tears flowing down her face. She was muttering into his chest words that none of them could understand.

'He's gone. He's gone. He's gone.'

Her world was collapsing around her the more she thought about it. All of the years she'd spent with Genesis. All of the time she'd grown to love him. Now, he was gone.

Sephiroth finally approached Zack and placed his hands on his mother's back. Rei noticed the contact, and turned towards Sephiroth immediately. Her eyes met his, and she could see the despair behind his eyes as well. Unable to hold herself together, she threw her arms around Sephiroth's neck and squeezed him tightly.

Seeing his mother in so much pain was more than Sephiroth could handle and he mumbled, "I'm sorry, mother. I'm so sorry."

Rei shook her head and continued to burry her face in Sephiroth's neck, "I don't understand. What did I do wrong? I protected him and I made him strong."

Sephiroth hung his head, and slipped his arms under Rei's legs. He lifted her up from the ground and began to carry her away from the room. He walked towards her quarters, and walked through the door. In the room, Lazard stood waiting to tell them about something equally as distressing. Before Lazard could utter a syllable, Sephiroth raised his hand to hush him.

"I don't care what it is you have to tell us, Lazard. It's just gonna have to wait."

Lazard could see by the state of Rei that what he had to tell her would only make things worse, but it had to be said regardless.

"I'm sorry Sephiroth, but this is of dire importance. I didn't realize how important until just seconds ago."

Sephiroth placed Rei gently on her bed and turned towards Lazard, "Fine. What is so important, Lazard?"

Lazard crossed his arms and sighed heavily, "Genesis isn't the only person who has dissappeared. Several of our lower class soldier members have left with him. So this was not a spur of the moment thing. Genesis has been planning this, possibly for weeks."

Lazard soon regretted revealing this detail when another scream came from the corner of the room. Sephiroth gasped aloud, when he saw Rei raise her hands over her head, and bring them down against the wall beside her. Her fists smashed through the concrete, and left two beach ball sized craters behind.

"No. No. No. No. No. No. NO!"

She was about to raise her hands again when Sephiroth took a tight hold of her wrists and held her back.

"Mother! Stop! You're going to hurt yourself!"

Sephiroth's pleads fell on deaf ears, and Rei struggled against his grip. She could have lived with thinking that Genesis had simply run away. There was no way she could accept the fact that Genesis had stolen a bunch of their men, and run away with the intent to use them for something. Genesis, the student she thought she knew, had turned his back on her and was now doing Planet knows what with a large group of soldiers. The thought that he had done something so manipulative and cruel was more than Rei could handle.

Sephiroth easily held his mother back, but there was little he could do to help her breaking heart. He knew she cared for Genesis just as much as she cared for him.

"I protected him. I made him strong. I protected him. I made him strong."

Sephiroth released his mother's wrists and wrapped his arms tightly around her, trying to bring her some comfort, "I know, mother."

Sephiroth's eyes widened when he felt a strange energy emmiting from Rei's body. It didn't feel malevolent, but it was powerful. The green areas on her skin began to glow, and a small lump began to protrude out of one of her shoulder blades. Rei didn't notice these strange happenings through her despair, but Sephiroth noticed, and it frightened him. He took hold of her shoulders tightly and pushed her slightly away from him, so he could look in her eyes.

"Mother! Mother talk to me! What's going on!"

No sooner had he asked the question did Rei's eyes begin to glow the same green color as her skin. The bulge on her back started to split open slowly, and blood began to pour down her back. Now Sephiroth's fears shot through the roof.

"Mother! Answer me! Please! Talk to me!"

Sephiroth's cries once again fell on deaf ears. Rei's despair was far too great for even Sephiroth to break through. Finally the bulge on her back was split all the way open, and a white solid began to grow out of the open gash, ripping through her jumpsuit quickly. Sephiroth watched in horror as the solid grew and grew, absorbing blood as it came out. When it grew to be about a foot, Sephiroth could finally make out feathers hanging from the white solid.

"A wing?"

However, the wing did not stop at a foot. It grew and grew until it protruded out of Rei's body about five feet. Once it was done growing, the green skin and Rei's eyes stopped glowing. Rei slumped over into Sephiroth's arms. Her eyes rolled into the back of her skull, and she lost consciousness. Lazard and Sephiroth exchanged worried looks, and Angeal and Zack were speechless.

"Lazard, what just happened to my mother? Why did she grow a wing?"

Lazard was about to offer the best answer he could when he noticed a familiar sight appearing on her other shoulder blade.

"Sephiroth! It's happening again!"

Sephiroth's eyes darted down to her other shoulder blade, and he once again had to witness his mother's skin split apart. However, he did not see a white wing this time. This time, it was a black one. It grew out more quickly than the other one had and it grew about five inches longer. Blood soaked Rei's back from the open wounds the wings had caused. Sephiroth's eyes now flared with the intense anger welling up inside of him.

"Lazard! You know what's going on don't you! Tell me why this happened! Why did she grow wings!"

Lazard sighed heavily and collapsed on a nearby couch, "It's a side effect of the intense amount of Jenova cells in her body. However, the wings should only appear if she wills it. So somewhere in her mind, she wanted this to happen."

Sephiroth laid Rei down gently on her stomach and stood up, "I don't think my mother wanted black and white wings to rip themselves out of her skin. She hates pain."

Lazard's eyes darkened, "I know, Sephiroth. But those wings wouldn't have appeared unless she willed them to. Even if she just thinks the small thought "I wish I could fly" the wings would appear. Maybe in her despair, she wished she could just fly away from it all. That thought alone would have triggered the wings' appearances."

Sephiroth scoffed and moved back over to his mother. He lifted her carefully into his arms and asked, "Will she bleed like this every time? I mean, if she learns how to use these wings, will she always bleed like this?"

Lazard shook his head, "Possibly. But I should think that her body would adjust to it after a while."

Sephiroth nodded and approached Rei's clothes cabinet. He pulled out one of her other jumpsuits and carried her to the bathroom.

"All of you get out so I can get her cleaned up. She's in no shape for training today as you can clearly see."

Lazard, Angeal, and Zack did not argue and left the room immediately. After the three men had left, Sephiroth closed the bathroom door.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

*Three days later*

The more she thought about it, the less she wanted to even take her head out from under her blankets. After she had regained consciousness, Sephiroth had informed her of what had happened. Apparently, she had been so distraught about Genesis' dissapearance that she hadn't noticed a pair of black and white wings rip themselves out of her body

'How does a person not notice something like that? Even if I was really distracted.'

However, the wings were only the second most predominate thing on her mind. She couldn't figure it out no matter how hard she tried. Why did he leave? Did she do something wrong? Was she too hard on him? Did she pay too much attention to Angeal, Sephiroth, and Zack and not enough attention to him?

'What did I do? I did everything I was supposed to do. I kept him safe and made him strong.'

Outside of her bedroom, Sephiroth, Zack, and Angeal stood waiting for her to calm down so they could enter the room. As soon as she'd opened her eyes and they'd told her about the wings, she went into a weird kind of emotional frenzy. She started talking to herself, and completely ignored them no matter what they said to her.

"Hey Sephiroth," Zack said, "Do you think she'll be all right?"

Sephiroth hung his head and replied, "I honestly can't say. Mother has never been under this much stress before."

Zack put his back against a nearby wall and asked, "Sephiroth, when she kept saying "I protected him. I made him strong." What did she mean?"

Sephiroth did not raise his eyes and simply said, "When Shinra first gave me to her I was an infant. She was told that if she protected me and made me strong that I would be her son. So in her mind, you, Genesis, and Angeal are as much her sons as I am because she protected all of you and made you strong."

Zack was not the only one to be shocked by Sephiroth's statement. Angeal had never known about Rei's true feelings either. Suddenly it became so clear as to why Genesis' dissapearance had hurt her so deeply. For her, it was a mother losing her child.

"I know what to do!" Zack exclaimed.

Sephiroth and Angeal's eyes fell instantly on him and they both mumbled, "What?"

"I know how to get her to come out of the room and continue our training."

Before Sephiroth and Angeal had a chance to ask him what his plan was, Zack darted into Rei's room and ran to her bed. She heard his approach, but she was too lost in thought and despair to give it much of a care.

"Sensei. Please talk to me. I need your help."

A light clicked on in Rei's mind and she turned towards Zack instantly.

"What is it Zack? What's wrong?"

"See I knew that would work?"

Rei eyed him with confusion and asked, "What are you talking about?"

Zack smiled brightly and replied, "Even though you are torn up over Genesis, you still want to make sure that me, Sephiroth and Angeal are okay right?"

Rei wasted no time in answering, "Of course."

"Then why are you still in here, sensei? You've protected us and made us strong up to this point, but you can't keep doing that if you are locked up in here all day. You know as well as I do that you have more children than just one."

Zack's words were like thorns in her hands, but they were also a ray of light. She'd spent the past three days locked up in her room, not giving a single thought to the well being of her other three students. She'd let herself become so lost in her despair that she'd forgotten her duties. In her mind, she chastised herself again and again for allowing herself such weakness.

"You're right Zack. I've been such a fool."

Zack shook his head, "I didn't mean it that way, sensei. Of course we didn't expect you to get over losing Genesis in a day. But locking yourself up in your room for three days straight isn't healthy, and we were starting to think you weren't coming out. We were worried about you."

Rei smiled at Zack's kind words and said, "Thank you, Zack. That means a lot."

Zack scratched the back of his head and replied, "Aww it's nothing."

Zack was unsure what shocked him more, how quickly his sensei jumped out of her bed, or how quickly she started barking orders.

"All right you three, get your asses in gear. Sensei is back, and you all have lots of missed training to make up for."

* * *

><p>"Wutai?"<p>

"Yes, Wutai."

Rei was glad to be given new missions since her bought of depression ended, but she wasn't expecting to be sent to a place as far away as Wutai. True, she'd always wanted to visit the city, but not under the circumstances she was visiting under.

"What's the objective?" she asked.

Lazard pressed his glasses up from the tip of his nose and said, "Your mission is the same as it always is. Follow the weakest link and make sure they fulfill their mission. In this case, Zack is the weakest link. You stay close to him and keep him alive. Angeal will be on the mission too, but I'm sure you know that he can take care of himself."

Rei sighed, "But I guess you don't want me to let Zack know I'll be following him?"

"No. He can't know you are protecting him. It will raise his morale if he doesn't know."

"Fine Lazard. But it just seems cruel to me."

Lazard shook his head and mumbled, "Get outa here."

Rei grinned and skipped happily out of the room. Sephiroth stood outside of the door, arms crossed.

"Hey Sephiroth. Are you coming on the mission too?"

He shook his head, "Apparently I'm not needed on this one."

Rei eyed him intently and said maliciously, "You didn't want to do it so you pushed it off on Zack, huh?"

Sephiroth's eyes widened and he turned his face away, "D-Don't be ridiculous mother."

Rei smiled, "Okay. But you'd better get some training done while we're gone, you slacker."

Sephiroth shook his head and mumbled, "Yes mother."

* * *

><p>"Whoa! So this is Wutai!" Rei exclaimed.<p>

"Sensei," Zack whispered, "Don't you think you should keep it down? Someone might hear you."

Rei realized her outburst and quieted herself, "Right. Sorry. But even I get excited sometimes. I've just never seen such a beautiful city before. It kind of makes me sad that we have to attack it."

Zack rolled his eyes and muttered, "Well orders are orders."

"Yeah," came the voice of Angeal, "So let's get on with it."

Rei hung her head and mumbled, "Right. Okay Zack. You know what to do?"

Zack nodded, "Infiltrate and take out as many enemies as I can while you and Angeal comb the outskirts of the city to keep any outside forces from interfering."

"Good. Then let's move out."

* * *

><p>Keeping up with her young student was proving to be more of a challenge than Rei had initially expected. He was cutting through the Wutai forced like butter.<p>

'What in Odin's name is going on? Someone lit a fire under his ass.'

He was moving so quickly the she was having to make use of her new found wings just to keep him within her sights. The blood running down her back was a bit of an annoyance, but she decided it was worth it for the ability to fly.

'I hope that Lazard was right when he said that the bleeding should stop happening.'

Finally, after flawlessly fighting his way through the entire city, Zack found himself in a pinch. On all sides, he was surrounded by Wutai forces with spears and swords. Rei wanted to swoop down and give him assistance, but she wasn't supposed to help him unless he was in danger of dying. So she sat back and watched his actions.

He impressed her when he managed to take out five of the men before the final three pinned him to the ground. He struggled with all of his might, but was unable to break out the the hold the men had on him. Rei stayed idle until she saw one of the the men hold their sword up to Zack's throat. That was her signal to attack.

Without a second thought, Rei jumped down from her place on the roofs and reached her hands out. She took hold of two of the men and pulled them away from Zack. The third man turned his face away from Zack and began to look around frantically, trying to find out what had just happened to his allies. Zack took advantage of the man's confusion and attacked. The man didn't even see the fist coming when it struck his jaw.

When all three of the men were safely incapacitated, Zack turned to Rei, "Sensei? Where did you come from?"

Rei had to quickly lie, "I was on the outside of this wall right here. Looks like you were lucky I was so close by."

Zack nervously scratched the back of his head, "Yeah. Sorry sensei."

Rei grinned and replied, "It's okay. We all make mistakes. Just don't make too many of them."

"Well you two just made the biggest mistake in the world by coming here!" came a high pitched voice from behind Zack.

Rei and Zack turned towards the voice, only to find a small Wutai youth standing before them. She had short black hair and bright brown eyes.

"Now you both have to face the wrath of Wutai's greatest warrior: Yuffie Kisaragi! Prepare to die, villains!"

Without a moments hesitation, Yuffie leapt towards Rei and began to throw punches towards her stomach. Rei watched in confusion as the youth continually threw punches towards her, but never actually hit her. Rei turned her gaze onto Zack, as if asking him what she should do. Zack made the motion of putting his hands over his stomach and doubling over in pain. Rei thought doing that would be a bit cruel, but if humoring her would allow them to continue their mission then she decided it was worth it.

"Oh no! Not Yuffie! Oh she's too powerful! I've no choice but to succumb to her awesome power!"

Rei then clutched her stomach tightly and fell forward onto her knees. Once she saw that Yuffie was still punching towards her, she fell face down onto the ground.

"Yeah! That's right! Nobody can stand up to the power of the White Rose of Wutai! Now you're next!"

She pointed her index finger at Zack and charged towards him.

* * *

><p>"Is she gone yet, Zack?" Rei whispered.<p>

Zack barely opened one of his eyes and peeked around him, "I don't see her."

After Yuffie had successfully 'taken down the enemy' she'd decided to stick around and celebrate for a good ten minutes before finally taking off towards the palace. Even though the little girl was no longer in sight, Zack and Rei were still weary of moving from their positions lest the child notice that they were in fact 'not defeated'. However, after a few more minutes of laying in the dirt, both teacher and student decided that they'd had about enough. They'd been told to avoid harming innocents, but keeping from harming the innocent was beginning to interfere with the mission.

"Come on Zack. We can't waste anymore time here."

Regretfully Zack nodded, "Yeah I guess you're right."

No sooner had the two gotten to their feet did they hear a loud 'BANG' from behind them. They both turned towards the sound and were met with a grizzly sight. Holding a piece of tattered clothing in its teeth was a very large coerul cat with blue fur and a red tail, and the beast did not look happy. Rei could tell immediately that the beast was far too powerful for her or Zack to take by themselves.

"Zack! Pay close attention right now! This thing is way too powerful for me to handle alone! I'm gonna need your help if we're gonna take this thing down!"

Zack's eyes widened at his sensei's words. He'd never heard her actually admit to needing help from anyone before.

'This must be a powerful enemy if sensei is asking me for help.'

"Okay sensei. What do you need me to do?"

Rei smiled and replied, "I need you to be the muscle. You know as well as I do that I'm nowhere near as good of a fighter as you, Sephiroth, and Angeal. So I need you to do the fighting, and I will keep you alive with my magic. I'll throw in a few attack spells here and there to help you, but for the most part, the fighting is all yours."

Zack was astonished by the amount of trust Rei as putting in him. He'd only been her student for a few weeks and she was already trusting him with a task this big.

'Well I'm not about to let her trust be misplaced.'

"Right! I got it sensei!"

"Be careful Zack."

Zack didn't reply and simply charged towards the monster with his sword raised over his head.

* * *

><p>"Good job, Zack."<p>

It had taken Zack and Rei a good twenty-five minutes to finally defeat the large cat. It had proven to be much more powerful than Rei had initially believed. Most of Zack's attacks seemed to bounce off of the beast, and it wasn't until Rei powered up his sword with lightning magic that the beast started to react to any of Zack's attacks.

"Thanks *pant* sensei."

Because of Rei's healing magic, Zack had not suffered any injuries. However, his stamina loss was not something Rei's magic could prevent, so he collapsed onto one knee and attempted to catch his breath.

"Take a short rest, Zack. You deserve it. But we can't sit here too long. There may be more of those things around."

She hoped that she was wrong. If another of the coeruls showed up, there was no guarantee that they would be able to walk away from the fight in one piece. However, her worries were only escalated when she glimpsed the piece of tattered clothing that had been hanging from the mouth of the coerul. Stitched into the black cloth was an 'A' that Rei recognized very well.

Angeal and Genesis had been bickering because their clothing kept on getting mixed up inside of the laundry. So Rei took all of their clothes and stitched the first initial of their first name into each article of clothing, even their socks. Therefore, when Rei saw the slightly bloody black cloth, she could only assume the worst.

"Dear Odin, no," she whispered.

Zack walked up behind her to see what had caught her attention, and gasped aloud when he saw the small patch of black.

"Angeal!" he exclaimed.

Rei shook her head rapidly and instantly hit her knees, "Angeal! For the love of Odin! Why him!"

Zack couldn't sit idly by and watch his sensei break down the way she had when Genesis had disappeared, so he quickly tried to cheer her up.

"Sensei, don't worry. This doesn't mean anything. For all we know, he may have simply been injured."

Rei continued to shake her head and managed to choke out, "A-Angeal wouldn't have a-allowed something to injure him and g-get away. You know th-that as well as I do."

Zack shook his head along with her, "No. There's no way Angeal would let himself be beaten by a cat!"

Rei was appreciative of Zack's attempts to cheer her up, but still she had the gut feeling that her student was dead. In order to clear up the matter for herself and Zack, Rei approached the dead body of the coerul and raised her left hand. It glowed red with a fire spell, and she concentrated the spell into a small, blade-like energy. Starting from the beast's abdomen, Rei sliced it all the way down the center of its body, stopping at the groin area. When the contents of its stomach spilled out onto the ground, Rei wanted to vomit. A mangled body wearing Angeal's 1st class soldier clothes fell at her feet. It was missing all of its limbs besides its left arm. The remaining skin had been turned green by the stomach acid, and without a head to prove otherwise, Rei had to assume that the body laying at her feet was that of her student.

"Angeal," she whispered.

* * *

><p>*One Month later*<p>

Even though she had loved Angeal and Genesis equally, Angeal's death was particularly hard for Rei to accept. In her mind it had been easier to deal with Genesis' disappearance because he was still alive. Knowing that Angeal had been lying dead at her feet, and seeing his mangled body had left a scar on Rei's mind and soul that she was quite sure would be there for the rest of her life. For Sephiroth and Zack, their teacher had been inconsolable. She didn't ignore them or treat them badly, but they could easily tell that everything she did or said was backed up by despair. Even their training sessions had begun to suffer due to her depression because their training always went more smoothly if she was on the top of her game. She wasn't.

Of course, Zack's constant denial wasn't helping her moods any. He kept on trying to cheer her up by saying everyday that Angeal was not really dead. Even though they'd found a half digested body wearing Angeal's clothing, Zack would not accept it. He refused to believe for even a second that his mentor was dead. What Zack didn't realize was his denial was not making Rei feel better, but instead it was making it even harder for her to get through the days.

Finally, President Shinra began to notice her downfall and decided to take matters into his own hands. This was a grave mistake because if her son and her only remaining student couldn't get through to her, what were the chances that he could? Lazard tried to explain this to his father many times, but the President would not hear a word of it because in his mind, Rei was nothing more than a tool for his use. So far the tool had been working to his liking, but now it was malfunctioning and he didn't like it one bit.

The President stormed into Rei's living quarters and immediately began making demand after demand.

"I do not pay you and keep you living in this building for you to slack off and not do your duties, Rei! Get out of bed this instant, and do your work properly!"

His shouting fell on deaf ears. Rei neither wanted to hear or cared much about what the President had to say. To her, he was nothing more than an uptight business man with too much money for anyone to spend in a lifetime.

"Do you hear me, Rei? Return to your duties this instant!"

Once again, Rei remained stuck to her couch, staring at the photo Angeal had given her for her birthday.

"Rei! You will obey me or I cannot guarantee the safety of Mr. Fair!"

Finally, the fat old man had gotten her attention but not in the way he was expecting. Instead of doing exactly as he asked, she rose from the couch and turned her gaze instantly on him. Her eyes and green skin began to glow.

President Shinra flinched and exclaimed, "You can't raise your hand to me! I own you! You wouldn't even be alive if it weren't for my money you ungrateful girl!"

"And you wouldn't have my small unit of elite soldiers if it weren't for me! Where would your company be without me and Sephiroth!"

President Shinra continued to flinch and started to back away when Rei's hands glowed red, "You wouldn't dare!"

"Wouldn't I? What was it that you told me when you first gave me Sephiroth? You told me that if I protected him and made him strong that he would be my son. I did exactly what you told me. I protected all of them and made them all strong. Sephiroth, Zack, Genesis, Angeal. So you know what that means right? All four of them are my sons. If you threaten to take my son away from me, there is nothing I won't do to stop you. Just keep that in mind the next time you threaten my son's life. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some training to do."

The green in her eyes and skin died down to their normal color and she walked silently from the room, shouting to a nearby janitor to clean up the yellow stain the President had left on her livingroom carpet.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

*Two days later*

After her run-in with President Shinra, Rei's depression had lessened a bit, but she still struggled to keep it at bay. Training had gone back to its normal rigor, but she was still distracted from time to time.

However, when she heard news that Genesis had been spotted, her depression only worsened, not because Genesis had been found, but because of the circumstances in which he was found. The person they'd found was not Genesis, but a copy that looked identical to Genesis. Rei had even been brought in to examine the remains. Certain marks and scars that Genesis had gained from her training were not present on the body, so she could safely say that it was not Genesis. Finding a living copy of him meant that Genesis still lived, but what he was doing with the copies was a different story entirely.

No one could seem to figure out what exactly Genesis was planning. The copies were only targeting specific mako reactors, and the real Genesis had not been spotted at any of them. So when reports came of a disturbance at a mako reactor in Midgar, the President decided that these attacks were a bit too close to home.

"I want you three to investigate the mako reactor. Find out what exactly is going on there. If Genesis is the problem, I want him eliminated."

He could see the anger apparent in Rei's eyes at his orders, but he simply ignored her and continued, "I don't want to see any more of my money go out the window because of this. You will stop Genesis no matter what the cost."

Rei knew that the President was very serious about their orders to kill Genesis, but she also knew that she was perfectly serious about not killing him. There was nothing the President could do or say that would convince her to take Genesis' life. So rather than argue with the old man, Rei simply stormed out of the room, ignoring the Presidents orders to obey him.

They were sent to the mako reactor directly above the Sector 5 slums which was an unstable area already without a bunch of soldiers and Genesis copies attacking each other on top of it. The four of them entered the reactor expecting to find Genesis copies, but what they were met with was something else entirely. A winged dog swooped down from the air and landed before them. At first, they took it to be a normal monster, but when Sephiroth struck it down, they found what looked like a carving in its neck. Rei knelt down next to the dog and took a closer look at the carving.

She gasped aloud at the sight before her. Carved into the dog's neck was Angeal's face.

"Sephiroth," she exclaimed, "Look at this!"

Sephiroth knelt down next to her and observed the face as well, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking, mother?"

"Yeah. Hollander."

Zack saw the face as well and asked, "Who is Hollander?"

Rei sighed and replied, "He was another scientist in the running for the head of the science department. But he lost out to that foul bastard Hojo. It's most likely that he is out for revenge against Shinra."

Sephiroth continued, "He seems to be creating Angeal copies as well, which is quite odd. If Angeal were truly dead, the only way Hollander would be able to make the copies is if he had a sample of Angeal's genes like blood or hair. However, there's no way Hollander could have obtained those things. Which means-"

"Angeal is still alive," Rei whispered, "But I don't understand. Why would he want us to believe he was dead?"

Sephiroth hung his head, "Most likely shame. He didn't want us to know he was working with Hollander and Genesis."

Rei shook her head, "No. There's no way Angeal would do this! There has to be another explanation!"

Sephiroth placed a hand on Rei's shoulder, "Let's split up and search the reactor. Perhaps we will find some sort of clue as to what is going on."

Rei nodded and hung her head, "Okay. I just pray to Odin that your theory is wrong."

"Me too, mother."

* * *

><p>When Sephiroth had suggested that they split up, Rei didn't think splitting up was going to be a problem. It never had before. But when she came face to face with her presumed dead student, it suddenly became a very large problem.<p>

"Angeal!" she exclaimed, "Thank Odin!"

"Sensei?"

"What the hell is going on, Angeal? Why did you make us think you were dead? Why did you leave?"

Rather than answer her, Angeal simply turned his back. When she was about to ask the questions again, her words were halted. Just as she had, Angeal sprouted a white wing out of his right shoulder blade. He then turned back towards her, and Rei could see the look of utter disgust in his eyes.

Sensei. I've become...a monster."

Rei's heart sunk at the despair voiced by Angeal's words. She stared at the wing, wondering why it made him so upset. As an attempt to make him feel a bit more comfortable, Rei allowed her wings to sprout from her back as well. Once again, blood poured down her back, but she ignored it.

"What does that mean, Angeal? Does that mean I'm a monster too?"

Angeal did not hesitate and said, "Yes. You, me, Genesis, and even Sephiroth. You know as well as I do that we are all monsters. You know about the experiments that were done on all of us, and yet you never told any of us about them. Why? Why did you let us go on thinking we were normal?"

Rei found no words could escape her mouth, and she hung her head silently, not sure as to what to say to him.

"That's what I thought. You have no answer for me do you? Was it a comfort to know that you had so much power over us? Did you enjoy knowing a secret about us that could destroy our lives?"

Rei shook her head rapidly, "No I-"

"You what?"

"I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to think there was anything wrong with you because there isn't. None of this is your fault. You were experimented on before you were born by the people who were supposed to love you. I thought that if you found out that you and Genesis would do something like this. So I didn't tell you. I wanted to keep the pain from you as long as I could. But then Hollander told you didn't he?"

Angeal could hear the hate in her voice and said, "Yes. Hollander told us what was going on. However, that's not what caused us to leave. No Sensei. What caused us to leave was the fact that you didn't tell us about degradation. You didn't tell us that mine or Genesis' bodies could start to decay."

Rei's eyes widened, "D-Decay?"

Angeal scoffed, "Don't pretend like you didn't know. President Shinra always told you everything so that you would be always up to date."

Rei shook her head again, "No! I swear to you, Angeal. I had no idea that your bodies could decay!"

"Lies!"

"Have I ever lied to you before, Angeal?"

Before Angeal could reply, he heard footsteps coming from behind Rei. Rei heard them too, and turned towards them. A mistake on her part. Angeal seized the opportunity and took a tight hold of her left arm.

"Osmose," he chanted.

Rei screamed aloud as she felt her power being quickly drained from her. Without the use of her magic, Angeal knew that Rei would be powerless to fight him. Rei had never had the osmose spell cast on her before, so she was unprepared for the pain that shot through every inch of her body. If felt as if her insides were being ripped out of her body piece by piece.

"This is where you made a mistake, sensei. You allowed yourself to become totally reliant on your magic. Without it, you are completely powerless."

He released her arm, and she slumped down onto her knees, completely devoid of magic.

"A-Angeal."

"I'm sorry, sensei. But I can't let you get in the way."

Finally, Rei found the source of the footsteps. In front of her ran a chubby, middle aged man with dark gray hair and a dark gray beard. When her eyes fell upon his face, she recognized him instantly.

"Hollander," she whispered.

Hollander grinned back at her and said, "Hello, Rei. How has life been treating you?"

"Shut up."

"Sensei!" came a voice from behind her.

Rei recognized the voice immediately and didn't even need to turn around to see who it was. Her spiky-black-haired student rushed to her side and took hold of one of her arms in an attempt to help her up.

"No! Don't worry about me, Zack! Hollander can't escape!"

Zack turned his eyes towards Hollander only to be in for a shock when he saw Angeal standing before him.

"Angeal! So you're working for Hollander now, huh?"

Rather than answer Zack, Angeal simply huffed and charged towards him, sword raised. Rei watched on in worry and helplessness as Angeal's sword crushed the floor beneath Zack, knocking her youngest student through the ground and into the Sector 6 slums.

"Zack!"

As much as she wished to dive into the slums after him, the osmose spell had drained all of her magic, and thus leaving her in a weakened state. She could scarcely move much less fly. Angeal and Hollander took the opportunity to escape from the reactor, knowing that Rei could not stop them.

* * *

><p>"Hello! Helllllooooo! Heeeeelllllllooooooo!"<p>

Though his head felt like a ton of bricks, Zack still managed to force his eyes open to try to find the source of the "Hellos" he was hearing. When his vision cleared, he was able to see a beautiful brown-haired woman wearing a white and blue dress. Her green eyes lit up when she noticed that he was awake.

"Hooray!" she said cheerfully.

Zack was still in a bit of a daze, so he impulsively mumbled, "Heaven?"

The woman was amused by his choice of words and jokingly replied, "Not quite. Church in the slums."

Later Zack would chastise himself for letting his head injury get the better of him, but at that moment he was still dazed so he said, "An angel?"

The woman once again giggled at his statement, and answered, "No. I'm Aerith."

* * *

><p>For the second time that day, Rei found herself being awakened by the bright lights of her bedroom. It wasn't until she sat up in her bed that she remembered what had happened. Her eyes widened, and she threw herself out of the bed. As soon as her feet touched the floor, and she placed her full weight on them, her head began to spin.<p>

"Crap."

Before she was able to balance herself, she collapsed onto her knees, and then to her back. Apparently she'd made a loud thud when she hit the ground because it was only seconds before she saw Sephiroth burst through her bedroom door.

"Mother! Are you all right?"

Rei managed to nod weakly before Sephiroth scooped her up into his arms. He carried her back to her bed and gingerly laid her down.

"You have to stay in bed, mother. That spell Angeal used on you took quite a toll on your body."

Rei sighed heavily, hating the fact that she couldn't even move from her bed, "I noticed. How long do I have to stay here?"

"Until your magic returns. Until then, your body will be too weak to do much moving."

Rei chastised herself for allowing herself to become so dependent on her magic. She'd become so dependent on it that without it she was completely useless.

"Zack is fine by the way."

Rei grinned. Before she could even think the thought, Sephiroth knew she was going to ask about Zack.

"Where is he?"

"He's on his way back from the slums, but there's something you should know."

Rei could see the look of concern in Sephiroth's eyes and knew something was wrong, "What is it?"

"Genesis. He's on his way here right now with a small army of copies."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

When Sephiroth and Rei entered the lobby of the Shinra building, they were met with a grizzly sight. Dozens of low class soldiers and Shinra employees were laid out across the floor, mangled and bloody. A quick look around the room easily revealed the cause of the trauma. Pouring in through the front door were Genesis copies and a small unit of Shinra defense machines. Sephiroth looked around at the destruction and then back at his mother. Though she was still weak from the attack earlier that day, he could not convince her to stay put.

"Sephiroth, those machines were built to protect Shinra employees! Why are they attacking!"

Sephiroth sighed heavily, "Genesis probably modified their functions. Whatever the case, we have to stop them."

"Right."

* * *

><p>Getting back to the Shinra building was proving to be a problem for Zack. All along the way he was being met with wave after wave of Genesis copies, each more powerful than the ones before. The thought of all of these copies attacking the Shinra building sent a chill down his spine.<p>

'I have to get back. Sensei is probably still in pretty bad shape. There's no way she could recover from something like that after just a few hours.'

"Hey, need some help?"

The all too familiar voice of his mentor shook Zack out of his thoughts.

"Angeal. What are you doing here?"

* * *

><p>'I don't know why I'm so surprised.'<p>

As soon as she raised a hand to help Sephiroth defeat the intruders, she was met with a cruel reminder. Attempting to cast even the most meek fire spell resulted in nothing but small sparks. So, since she could be of no help on the battlefield, Sephiroth sent her upstairs to help with evacuating the Shinra staff.

'At least my wings still work.'

Suddenly a eerie thought creeped into her head. Hojo. He was a Shinra employee as well. That would mean that she would have to rescue him along with everyone else.

She sighed heavily and said, "Dammit. I wish I could forget my duties just this once and let that bastard die."

Deciding it would be best to go ahead and get the rescue over with, Rei took off towards Hojo's lab.

* * *

><p>When Zack arrived at the Shinra building, he was met with the same gruesome sight that Rei and Sephiroth had been forced to behold. Countless dead, several wounded, and Shinra mechanisms being the cause of most of it. Angeal flew him into the 7th floor of the building where Sephiroth was waiting.<p>

"Sephiroth!" Zack exclaimed, "Where is sensei? Is she all right?"

Sephiroth nodded, "No need to worry, she is helping people evacuate the building. It's nothing she needs her magic for so she should be fine."

Sephiroth's eyes fell on Angeal and he glared sharply, "I understand that you were trying to keep her from getting into danger, Angeal. But if you ever raise a hand to my mother again, I will rip you to shreds."

Angeal chuckled slightly, "Understood."

Zack, who was weary of waiting around said suddenly, "What can I do? I want to help."

Sephiroth and Angeal exchanged glances before Angeal replied, "Go to the science floor. Dr. Hojo has been working there for months now, so he's probably still there. Protect him. He is Shinra's best scientist."

Zack nodded, "Okay. I'll see ya later."

Without hesitation, Zack bolted off towards the science floor.

* * *

><p>"Dr. Hojo?"<p>

As soon as Rei laid eyes on the old man, her stomach turned. The image of him shooting the .45 caliber bullet into Vincent's chest played through her mind again and again. The thought of having to protect the man who'd caused her such anguish was sickening.

"Well well. I never thought they'd send you to rescue me. Having to protect me must make your blood boil."

Rei rolled her eyes, "Shut up, Hojo. Just follow me and I'll take you out of here."

"Will you now? How can I be sure that you won't try to take advantage of this situation and finally get revenge for poor little Vincent Valentine?"

Rei continued to glare at the mad scientist, "I should take revenge. I should kill you right here and now. But doing that won't bring Vincent back so what's the point?"

Hojo huffed and replied, "Not the answer I expected. Tell me something, girl. Why is it that you feel so strongly for the man? You only ever saw him through glass. You never touched him, spoke to him, or had any real interaction with him. It makes no sense that you would have such strong feelings for a man you never knew."

Rei hung her head at the scientist's questions and answered, "It's something you would never understand. A cold-hearted man like you doesn't even know the meaning of love, so what difference would my explanation make?"

As soon as the word 'love' left her lips, her hands flew to her mouth. Never in her whole life had she told anyone besides Sephiroth about Vincent or her feelings for him. Now she'd let it slip to her worst enemy.

"How adorable. You overheard his conversations with Lucrecia, and saw the look in his eyes when he spoke to her. Those two things alone made you fall in love with him. Such nonsense."

Hojo's words made her blood boil even more, but she held herself, "Nonsense? Maybe. But it's not like it matters now. Vincent is dead."

"Are you sure about that?"

Rei's eyes widened, "What?"

"Sensei! Look out!"

Before she could question the scientist further, she felt a weight pushing her to the ground. When she glanced over her shoulder, she saw the spiky black hair of her student.

"Zack? What are you-"

"It's Genesis!"

Before Rei had time to turn to look for him, Genesis had already shoved Zack away from her and pulled her to her feet. His grip on her left wrist was tight.

"Hello, Sensei."

Rei looked into the eyes of her former student and could see the malice behind them, "Genesis. What are you doing? Why have you turned against us?"

"I think you know very well."

Rei hung her head and sighed, "You honestly believe that Hollander will be able to stop your degradation? If there were a way to do that, Hojo would have discovered it long ago."

She wanted to stab herself for giving the sadistic scientist the small compliment she'd given him, but she knew her assumption was correct.

"That's what you think, Sensei. But I assure you, I will stop this degradation, and if I can't then the world will go down with me."

Genesis's words were like ice, and Rei could feel her heart sink to the ground at his cruelty, "What's happened to...you? Where is the Genesis I used to know? Where?"

Genesis huffed and tightened his grip on her a little more, "He's long gone, Sensei. And he's never coming back."

Before Rei had a chance to reply, she felt an all too familiar pain coursing through her body.

"Osmose."

The small amount of magic she'd managed to re-accumulate was instantly ripped away, leaving her void of all of her strength. She collapsed onto her stomach.

"G-Genesis."

Genesis smirked and looked down over his injured teacher, "Goodbye, Sensei."

Rei's eyes widened when she watched a black wing quickly emerge from Genesis' back. However, a strong bright light immediately forced her to close her eyes tightly, and a loud 'boom' shook her from head to toe. When the bright light faded, there was a large hole in the wall of Hojo's lab. And flying through the hole was Genesis.

Rei summoned up what little strength she had and called out, "Genesis!"

He heard his teacher's cries, but he ignored them and flew away.

* * *

><p>"Mother. How are you feeling?"<p>

It had been three days since Genesis' attack on the Shinra building. When Rei had been brought back to the infirmary she was so weak she could barely even move her finger tips. She was in such poor condition that the doctors had been forced to bring in powerful mages from outside of Midgar to transfer some of their own magic into her. When she was strong enough to be moved, she was transfered to her own living quarters where Sephiroth kept a near 24-hour watch on her. On the morning of the third day, she finally regained enough strength to walk on her own.

"I'm feeling much better, Sephiroth. No worries."

A quick look around the room left Rei with a series of questions. Stacked up on the table, in the corners, and on the chairs were scientific research books, mountains of paper, and writing utensils of all kinds.

"Sephiroth, what have you been doing in here?"

Sephiroth must not have noticed how much of a mess he'd made because even he looked surprised by the look of the room.

"Research. I was researching the history of the Shinra Science Department, trying to find some answers about Hollander."

Rei's curiosity was piqued so she asked, "And what did you find?"

"Everything you already know, mother."

Rei's heart skipped a beat at his words.

"No need to try to hide it, mother. I know you knew all along about Genesis and Angeal. What I want to know is why you never told them."

Rei hung her head in shame, unsure of how to explain herself.

"Mother? Please answer me."

"I...I didn't..."

"Mother?"

"I didn't want to cause them any pain."

Sephiroth was surprised by her response and replied, "Pain?"

"I know what it's like to be a freak. Look at me. There are pieces of Jenova stuck into my body. I'm never going to grow old, and I'm never going to die unless someone finds a way to kill me. I'm never going to have children, and I will never get married either. I will never have a normal life like everyone else. I didn't want Angeal and Genesis to feel the same pain I feel everyday. I didn't want them to feel like freaks because they aren't. They were forced to be what they are, just like me. I never want anyone to feel as lost and self-conscious as I do.

"It's like I've always said. You are all my sons, and if I can keep you from feeling any kind of pain I will do it because the last thing I want is to see any of my children in pain."

* * *

><p>"Sensei! Hey Sensei!"<p>

Her magic had almost fully returned to her and Rei was raring to go on a mission, so when Zack's voice came ringing through her ears it was a wonderful feeling.

"Come in, Zack."

Zack sulked through the door to her living quarters and said gloomily, "President Shinra is sending us to Modeoheim. Apparently Genesis has been sighted there. Come on. Let's go."

The gloom in Zack's voice worried Rei immensely and she asked, "Zack? What's wrong? You're usually so excited about going on missions. Why so glum?"

Zack didn't want to offer a lengthy explanation so he simply replied, "Aerith. I was supposed to spend time with her today."

Rei grinned slightly and said, "I see. You really do love her don't you?"

The word 'love' made Zack a little nervous, but he still nodded his head.

"Good then. You'd better treat her right."

As soon as the phrase left her mouth, Rei wanted to laugh at herself. She'd just told Zack, the most polite and caring man she knew, that he'd better treat a girl right.

"I will, Sensei. Now can we get going? I'd like to get this mission over with."

Rei chuckled at his hurried behavior, "All right, Zack. Let's go."

* * *

><p>Her skin burned from the flames that had engulfed the mountain side. Shards of metal stuck straight up from the ground all around her. When she, Zack, Tseng, and two infantrymen had departed in the chopper, they had not expected the turbulence that sent their ride crashing to the ground. Her instincts kicked in immediately and she pulled herself out of the rubble.<p>

"Zack! Zack! Where are you! Answer me!"

From behind her she heard a small grunt. When she turned towards the voice, she saw Zack with one of the infantrymen cradled in his arms. A large, deep gash ran straight down the middle of the young man's chest.

"Sensei! Quick! You have to help him!"

Rei nodded and bolted to Zack's side, "Hold him still. There are two large shards of metal still embedded in the wound."

"Okay. Hang on buddy. My Sensei is the best mage around. She'll fix you right up."

Rei looked up at the young man's face and found he was still wearing his mask. She knew that having such a hindrance to his breathing would not be helpful, so she reached her hand up and removed the mask from his face. She was met with blonde, spiky hair and bright blue eyes that clearly showed the amount of pain he was feeling.

"What's your name?"

Though the pain was near unbearable, the young man managed to reply, "C-Cloud."

Rei grinned and gently said, "Okay, Cloud. You still have shards of metal in your body. I'll have to remove them before I can repair the wound. I won't lie, this will be very painful. Just try to be as still as you possibly can."

Unable to answer her, Cloud simply nodded his head. She didn't ask if he was ready. That would have only made the situation more painful. Instead she took hold of the first shard of metal and swiftly yanked it out. Cloud cried out in pain, but managed to keep his movement minimal. However, the second shard was in a far more painful place.

'The kidney. Why did this one have to lodge in his kidney? Dammit.'

"Cloud, the second shard is stuck right into your kidney. This will hurt much more, but try to bear through it."

Cloud didn't nod that time, but Rei was sure he'd heard her. She put a firm grip on the second shard, and wasted no time in pulling it out, not wishing to cause Cloud any unnecessary pain. However, the sudden and intense pain proved too much for Cloud to handle and he jerked his whole body at once. Before Rei could blink, his wounded kidney began to squirt blood in her direction. It splashed into her eyes, but she quickly wiped it away. When her vision cleared, she placed her hands over the gushing blood fountain.

"Cloud! Don't move again!"

Zack tightened his grip on Cloud, giving Rei an easier time with healing the wound. Her hands glowed their normal green color, and the wound began to close. No matter how many times he saw it, Zack was still amazed at the healing powers of his Sensei. When all of the soft tissue, muscle, and flesh had pulled itself back together, the color returned to Cloud's previously paled face. He inhaled deeply and coughed a few times before he was finally able to speak.

"Th-Thank you...ummmm."

Rei smiled and rose to her feet, reaching out her hand towards him, "You can call me Rei, and don't mention it. It's my job as a medic to keep you guys alive."

Cloud took her hand and she pulled him to his feet. When he was moved, she saw more blood staining the ground beneath him than she'd expected to see. The reason soon became clear when Zack stood up. Sticking out of the left side of his rib cage was a giant metal shard.

Rei's eyes widened and she exclaimed, "Zack! Why in Odin's name didn't you tell me!"

"It's not that bad, Sensei. You know my body is a lot more durable than the average human."

Rei sighed and said, "Okay fine, but you still should have told me. Now hold still while I pull it out."

* * *

><p>'It's not like it matters, anyway. Vincent is dead.'<p>

'Are you sure about that?'

As she walked up the snowy mountain along side Zack and Cloud, the conversation between herself and Hojo kept replaying through her mind. Every time she thought about it, her heart ached with a maddening sense of hope.

'Was he telling me the truth, or was he just lying to mess with my head? Is Vincent really still alive?'

"Sensei? Sensei? Hey Sensei!"

The voice of her student snapped Rei back to reality and she said, "Yeah? What is it?"

Zack sighed heavily and replied, "You didn't hear a word I just said did you?"

Rei's face went red and she mumbled, "Sorry."

Zack shrugged his shoulders and asked, "So what's got you so distracted, Sensei? You've been a little out of it since Genesis attacked Shinra headquarters. Did the attack bother you that much?"

Rei shook her head, "No. I just..."

Her reluctance to answer worried him. She'd never had a problem talking to him about anything before. He began to think back, trying to remember if there was anything she'd ever went through that could be so touchy for her. Then the conversation he'd overheard between Rei and Hojo entered his memory. She had seemed very upset during the entire conversation.

"Is it because of what Hojo said to you about that Vincent guy?"

As soon as Vincent's name left Zack's mouth, Rei could feel tears welling up in her eyes. She fought them back, however, and said, "Yeah. I guess you could say that."

"Not what I expected. I've never even seen you look at a guy before, Sensei."

Rei felt a little foolish when she impulsively replied, "That's because I'm not interested in other men. Only Vincent."

She realized her outburst and one of her hands flew over her mouth. Heat overcame her face, and she turned away from Zack.

Zack's laugh echoed through the mountainside and he said, "There's no need to be so embarrassed, Sensei. So you had a thing for the guy. It's no big deal."

Rei chuckled slightly and said, "But it is a big deal...for me. I-I didn't even know him. The only thing I ever said to him was his name. All I ever did was watch him from behind two-inch-thick glass. It makes no logical sense that I have such strong feelings for him. But...his eyes were so...Never mind. It doesn't matter. You don't need to hear about this anymore."

She was expecting Zack to crack a joke at her, but he didn't. Instead he took hold of her left shoulder and asked, "You love him don't you? That's why the thought of him being alive is leaving you in such a spin."

Rei wanted desperately to answer his question, but she was unsure of what to say. How could she say she loved Vincent? She'd had so little contact with him. It would be almost childish for her to say she loved him.

"Sensei?"

"I don't know, Zack. Maybe I do love him, but it makes no logical sense. How can you love someone you never really knew?"

Zack didn't miss a beat when he answered, "You love me don't you? I haven't been your student very long, and you don't know all that much about me. But you still love me, right?"

"What kind of a question is that? Of course I do."

Zack slyly winked at her and said, "Well there you go."

"Hey Zack, look here! I see the Modeoheim mako reactor!" came Cloud's voice.

Zack turned his attention to Cloud and exclaimed, "All right! I'm coming!"

Rei watched as Zack ran off towards the city and smiled brightly. Somehow, Zack always knew just what to say.

'How is he so smart yet dumb at the same time?'

"Sensei!" Zack shouted, "Come over here!"

Rei didn't hesitate and rushed to ledge Zack was standing on. She looked down below the ledge and saw the mako reactor Cloud had been speaking of. It was surrounded by about a dozen of Genesis' soldiers.

"This is a bit annoying," Rei muttered.

"Can you get in, Sensei? You can fly over their heads without them seeing you right?"

Rei chuckled slightly and answered, "Zack. Think about what you just said."

As soon as Zack replayed what he had said through his mind, he wanted to kick himself. Of course she couldn't fly over them without them seeing her.

'Sensei may be superhuman, but she still leaves a shadow just like everyone else.'

Rei grinned and put a hand on Zack's shoulders, "Don't worry about it. I can't fly in without them seeing me, but it won't matter if they're all asleep."

Without another word, Rei's wings shot out of her back, leaving traces of blood in the snow. She lifted herself into the air and glided down to the reactor, quietly perching herself onto the wall surrounding it. Obviously she stood out, so every soldier there noticed her immediately. However, as they were all reaching for their guns, she muttered one simple word.

"Sleep."

Before any of them could even get a grip on their guns, they all slumped over, falling into a deep sleep. Satisfied with her work, Rei turned around, flashing Zack and the others a thumbs-up.

* * *

><p>When the five people walked into the reactor, they decided the best bet would be for them to split up and search the place as thoroughly as they could. Zack and Rei went one way while Cloud, Tseng, and the second infantryman went the other way.<p>

Zack and Rei ascended and descended many stairwells before they discovered a locked door. Rather than waste time trying to pick the lock, Zack reared one of his feet back, and kicked the door clean off of its hinges. The scene waiting for them was one of confusion.

Standing before them, pointing his sword at Hollander, was Genesis.

"Genesis!" Rei exclaimed.

Genesis' face turned towards her and he said, "Hello, Sensei. I'm surprised to see you up and about so soon after that Osmose attack."

Rei's eyes instantly fell to the ground at the feeling of betrayal and pain.

"Don't be sad, Sensei. I'm about to ensure my survival, and no one will get in the way."

Rei looked on at her former student, and was wrought with feelings of fear, doubt, and sadness. She knew she had been sent on this mission to stop Genesis. But how could she?

"_Even if the morrow is barren of promises_," Rei stated, "_Nothing shall forestall my return_. Right, Genesis?"

Genesis nodded, "Absolutely right, Sensei. Now stand back as I make this fool give me the Jenova cells."

Before Rei had a chance to answer, Zack had already charged towards Genesis, knocking away his sword, and pulling Hollander out of the line of fire.

"Sensei! You'll have to keep Hollander alive and make sure he doesn't get away. I'll take care of Genesis."

Though it pained her to have to bear witness to two of her children fighting, possibly to the death, Rei knew that nothing could be done to stop it. Genesis was hell bent on saving himself, killing Hollander, and destroying everything. With so much danger being posed by him, Rei knew there was no way for him to be left alone.

"Okay, Zack. I'll make sure Hollander doesn't try anything. I'll leave the fighting to you."

"I don't think so," came the voice of Hollander, "You think I didn't come prepared for you, Rei?"

No sooner had the words left the scientist's mouth did Rei feel an agonizing pain in her lower back. Warmth poured down both of her legs and she felt her strength begin to wane. Her knees buckled underneath her, and the rest of her limbs soon followed.

"Wh-What did...you do...to me...Hollander?"

"It's a little present I had made especially for you. It's a knife infused with Jenova cells. Your body is normally very durable and can withstand attacks from normal weapons with few reprocussions. However, your body is only made this powerful by the use of Jenova cells. Therefore, if Jenova cells are used against you as a weapon, your body cannot fight it back. As long as that knife stays in your back, you will not be able to stop me."

Rei found his words to be true when she tried to push herself up. Her arms could not bear the weight of her small body, and she collapsed back down.

She was barely able to raise her head and mumble, "B-Bastard."

"So long, Rei."

Just when Rei thought that Hollander was going to escape, out of nowhere came a flash of yellow. Hollander was shocked to find two strong arms holding him in place. Rei managed to raise her head a little higher and was shocked to see the owner of the arms.

"Cloud? How did you...? Never mind. *cough* Don't let him get...away."

If Rei had not spoken, Cloud may have been able to keep a hold on Hollander. However, when he looked down at her and saw her injury, he was momentarily distracted. Hollander took the opportunity to push away from Cloud and make a run for it. Though he'd just let the enemy escape, Cloud couldn't think about that. The only thing on his mind was that the woman who had just saved his life was lying on the floor bleeding. He immediately forgot Hollander and rushed over to Rei's side.

"Rei, what can I do?"

She was grateful for Cloud's caring, but her mind was only on Hollander, so she replied, "G-Get Hollander! He can't get away!"

Cloud shook his head, "With all due respect ma'am, I am not under your command. I want to help you, so tell me how."

Rei almost couldn't answer due to her utter shock. Throughout the entire Shinra company she had always been seen as the boogeyman. "Don't make her mad, she'll kill you." "Don't cross her, or she'll rip you a new one." That is what everyone would always say. Now Cloud, a low class infantryman was telling _her_ what to do.

'He's got balls, I'll give him that.'

"Okay, Cloud. J-Just pull this...knife out of my b-back. I'll t-take care of the...rest."

Cloud didn't hesitate, and curled his fingers around the blade. Without waiting for permission, he yanked it swiftly from her flesh. She whimpered slightly, but she did not waste any time in placing her hand on her lower back. As soon as she'd healed the wound, Cloud helped her to her feet.

"Zack! You got this!" she exclaimed.

Through the clashing of swords, Zack shouted, "Yeah! Go ahead, Sensei!"

Hesitation shot through Rei when she looked back at her students. With every clash of their swords she could feel Genesis moving further and further away from her.

"Be careful, Zack," was all she could think to say as she turned and ran from the room, Cloud close behind her.

Genesis watched as Rei left the room and muttered, "Are you ready to begin fighting me seriously now that she's not here to witness? I must say, I am disappointed that you would hold back against me just to try to keep her from seeing either of us hurt."

Zack huffed and said, "Shut up. You have no right to speak about her. Not after the way you have betrayed her. She loves you, Genesis, more than you can possibly know."

"I seriously doubt that."

Zak raised his sword over his head and replied, "Then you don't deserve to even think about her anymore."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

'_Even if the morrow is barren of promises. Nothing shall forestall my return.'_

As Genesis stood on the edge of the barren depths of the mako reactor, all of Zack's extincts kicked in at once. The thought of having to return to his sensei with news of Genesis' death was not something Zack was prepared to deal with.

"Genesis!"

Zack and Genesis' eyes met and for the first time, Zack was able to see the malice and anger behind them.

"Don't even try to act like you care," Genesis growled, "You don't care. Nobody does."

Before Zack could make a move, Genesis shifted all of his weight to his heels, and allowed himself to fall to the depths beneath the reactor. The only thing running through his mind was the look on his sensei's face when she heard the news.

Zack hung his head and mumbled, "And I thought there had to be other people around for an awkward silence to happen. Shows how much I know."

Figuring that waiting around would get him nowhere, Zack turned to leave the room.

"How am I gonna tell Sensei?"

His thoughts were heavy with dread as he left the room and headed towards the exit of the building. When he didn't see Rei, Cloud, or Tseng outside of the building he assumed they had chased Hollander into Modeoheim. So rather than waste his time with his dread, Zack proceeded to Modeoheim, knowing full well the impact his news was going to have on his teacher.

* * *

><p>When Zack walked into the Modeoheim bathhouse he had not expected the sight he faced. On the floor, seemingly unconscious were Cloud and Tseng. When he did not see Rei, he knew something was terribly wrong.<p>

He rushed quickly over to Cloud and exclaimed, "Cloud! Cloud, are you all right!"

Zack was relieved when he saw the blonde haired man stir and slightly raise his head, "Z-Zack?"

"Cloud, where is Sensei?"

Though he was clearly exhausted, Cloud replied, "A-Angeal showed up. He a-attacked Rei...trying to save Hollander. He took Hollander and e-escaped down that hallway. Rei went after...him."

A conflicted feeling ran through Zack's body as he looked upon the injured Cloud. He wasn't sure if he should chase after his Sensei or stay and tend to Cloud and Tseng.

Cloud must have been able to sense his hesitations because he choked, "G-Go after...her Zack. Angeal didn't l-look very well. I-I'm not...sure what he's p-planning, but it can't...be good."

Zack wanted to tell Cloud that Angeal wouldn't hurt Rei, but after Angeal attacked her with the osmose spell that day, Zack wasn't so sure of what Angeal would and wouldn't do.

So rather than burden him with false hope, Zack simply replied, "I'll do my best to help her, Cloud. You and Tseng just rest easy."

Zack stood from his place beside Cloud and turned towards the hallway. Before he was able to take off he heard Cloud whisper, "B-Be careful...Zack."

Zack turned his face towards Cloud, flashed him a cunning grin and took off into the hallway.

* * *

><p>When Rei had chased Angeal and Hollander into the back of the bath house, she knew that there would be trouble, but she was thinking of a different kind of trouble than what she faced at that moment.<p>

She'd done everything in her power to keep the secret about Angeal and Genesis hidden from them, and now Hollander had ruined all of it by revealing everything to Angeal. Everything about his mother, her cells, Genesis' gene failure and the fact that Rei had known all about it from the beginning. Now Angeal was out for three things: the location of the Jenova cells, revenge against Hollander and death.

As soon as she had set foot into the room, she had once again fallen victim to the dreaded 'osmose' spell.

'You'd think by now I'd be able to see this coming.'

Luckily Angeal had been slightly distracted by Hollander, and he had not drained her of her magic completely. She still had enough strength to move, but not enough to do much of anything else. The only thing she could do at that moment was wait for Angeal to make his move against Hollander and pray that she could stop him from doing anything too rash afterwards.

"Angeal," she mumbled below her breath, "Please don't do what I think you're going to do."

* * *

><p>When Zack finally entered the room, and found his sensei, he was halted by the scene before him. Surrounding Angeal, Hollander, and Rei were five different kinds of Angeal copies. Each of the copies were in a pouncing stance, so Zack could only assume that they were about to attack. However, his thoughts were proved wrong when all of the copies ran towards Angeal and surrounded him in a close proximity. Before Zack was able to utter a single syllable, a bright light shone from the crowd of copies<p>

From a few feet away, Zack could hear his sensei shout, "Angeal! Stop now!"

Rei's cries fell on deaf ears as the bright light faded away revealing a twisted and hideous hybrid consisting of Angeal and every one of the copies that had surrounded him. The hybrid held in its sharp claws a massive blue and silver spear with a jagged and twisted blade. A large, black and spiky mane ran down its back and four legs had sprouted out of the bottom of it. Angeal's one white wing flapped indifferently behind it.

Rei's eyes filled with terror, pain, and guilt as she shouted, "Angeal!"

Though she was still able to move, the sight of her student becoming a monster was more than Rei could handle. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she knew no more.

* * *

><p>She didn't want to open her eyes. She knew if she did she would have to face reality. She knew that Sephiroth was probably waiting next to her bed for her to wake. She knew that he was going to tell her Angeal was dead. She knew.<p>

And yet she still opened her eyes. The bright light above her bed offered her no comfort as it blinded her soon to be tear filled eyes. When her vision cleared, she found she had been correct in her assumption. Sitting beside her bed with painfully red eyes was her son. She's rarely ever seen Sephiroth shed any tears, so she knew that it could only mean one thing. She was right again.

"Don't say it, Sephrioth. Don't tell me. I already know."

All Sephiroth could do was stand from his spot next to her and join her on her bed. He curled up next to her and wrapped his arms gingerly around her broken form. Even though she made no noise, he could tell she was sobbing due to the dampness he felt against his chest. His mother's long, white hair seemed to wrap around his body and grip him as tightly as her arms did.

"Mother..."

"Don't say anything. Please don't say anything. Just hold me."

To hear his mother, who was usually such a strong-willed individual, say such pitiful things left Sephiroth in a state of pain he didn't know existed. He gripped her tighter and brought his lips down to the top of her head.

"Okay, Mother. Just promise me you won't lose yourself to this. I don't know what I'd do without you. Especially now."

She hadn't planned on answering him but something in the way he said 'especially now' made her think there was something she didn't know. She didn't know how she could possibly feel any worse than she did at that moment, but she still had to ask him.

"What...else is wrong?"

Sephiroth knew that she'd known about Angeal, but he was unable to explain the situation. The only thing he was able to say was, "Genesis."

That was the first time she had ever wanted to do something that Sephiroth asked her not to do. She wanted to lose herself. Losing herself sounded like the best thing to do at that moment.

* * *

><p>Two weeks later.<p>

While Zack and Sephiroth had managed to move on from the ordeal involving Angeal and Genesis, Rei wasn't even close. While she had been able to move on before, losing two of her students in the same day was something she wasn't sure she could handle. Sephiroth had begged her not to lose herself, and she was trying her best. However, having that much pain afflicted all at once would be enough to leave even the strongest individual deeply scarred.

Everyday Zack and Sephiroth would try their hardest to get her back on her feet, but no amount of coaxing could get her to move past the situation, especially after they discovered that Lazard had disappeared as well. Though not as painful as losing Angeal and Genesis, Lazard's disappearance was a heavy blow nonetheless. She'd watched Lazard grow up. He'd always been with her, not as a student but as a friend. And at that moment in time, she needed all the friends she could get.

"What are we going to do, Zack? We can't let her stay like this. You managed to talk her back into her normal self when Genesis first ran away."

Rei's two remaining students peered through her bedroom door and couldn't bear the painful scene before them. Rei lay flat on her back on her leather sofa, and clutched tightly in her arms was the picture Angeal had given her for her birthday. Her eyes were stained with tears and her face was as red as her eyes. The ceiling seemed to be the only thing she would allow to make eye contact with her. Every time Zack or Sephiroth had tried to approach her, she had turned her face away in an attempt to hide her pain.

"I don't know, Sephiroth. She's a lot worse off now than she was then. Angeal, Genesis, and Lazard are all gone. It's like she's just lost three huge pieces of herself. I don't know how we can pull her out of this."

Sephiroth didn't have time to reply because from behind Zack he caught a glimpse of yellow. He peeked out behind Zack and saw a low leveled infantryman slowly approaching.

"Friend of yours?" Sephiroth asked pointing in the direction of the infantryman.

Zack turned in the direction Sephiroth was pointing and his eyes fell on Cloud.

"Hey, Cloud. What's up?"

Cloud nervously looked behind Zack at Sephiroth and began to twiddle his thumbs uncomfortably. Zack glanced in Sephiroth's direction and grinned.

"There's no reason to be scared of him. He won't bite."

Zack's joke lightened some of Cloud's uneasiness and he asked, "How is Rei?"

Zack and Sephiroth exchanged looks and Sephiroth replied, "Not good. She still does her daily training with us, still eats, and still sleeps occasionally. But once she's done everything she has to do for the day, she returns to her room and does nothing but clutch that picture and stare at the ceiling. When we try to approach her, she turns away and won't look at us. She still talks, but she won't look us in the eyes. I think this may be more than she's able to handle. Everyone has their breaking point."

Cloud crossed his arms over his chest and said, "I wonder if she'd let me look at her?"

Sephiroth thought the question to be entirely naive yet still appreciated. However, Zack saw the question as something entirely different: an idea. Without a word, Zack motioned for Sephiroth and Cloud to follow him. He lead them away from the door lest Rei catch wind of his plan and deliberately try to avoid it.

When they were a safe distance away from Rei's door, Zack said, "I think I may know just what Sensei needs, but you have to be okay with it, Cloud."

"She saved my life. I don't want her hurt anymore than you two do."

"Good answer. Now I think what she needs is something to do. She doesn't have to help me and Sephiroth out with training as much as she used to because we are already so advanced. But you, Cloud. You're still a rookie. She can help you a lot more than she can help us, and on top of that, she can stop feeling like she's useless. It could work, right?"

Sephiroth crossed his arms over his chest and replied, "It just might."

"Are you up for it, Cloud?" Zack inquired.

Cloud did not hesitate and answered, "Yeah."

"Are you prepared to start immediately?"

Again, no hesitation, "Absolutely."

Zack grinned and said, "Great. Go to her room and talk to her. Tell her that you need her help. That always gets her attention since she's such a motherly person. After you've got her attention, ask her to train you. If she refuses, come back here and tell me because we may have a bigger problem on our hands."

Nothing much surprised Sephiroth, but when Cloud did not show the slightest hesitation and walked quietly towards Rei's room, even Sephiroth had to do a double take. Though he was only an infantryman, Cloud was showing a great deal of courage.

'Clearly he has no idea how grueling Mother's training is, but I'll still be grateful for his help.'

* * *

><p>When Cloud walked through the door of Rei's room, he expected her to be surprised, but instead she simply turned away from him just as she had from Zack and Sephiroth. At the sight of the pitiful reaction, he was tempted to turn around and leave her alone. However, he kept his resolve and approached the leather sofa. He sat down on the coffee table next to her and he suddenly forgot what he was supposed to say. When Zack had explained everything to him it had seemed so easy. Now that he was actually in the room, all of his hesitation returned to him.<p>

Saying that he wasn't intimidated by her would have been a lie, but he still felt a strong desire to help her. So he swallowed his fear and reached out to her.

He placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "Rei...I know things are still kind of hard for you right now, but do you think you could help me?"

If Cloud hadn't known better, he would have thought he was looking at a different person. Rei sat up on the couch at attention, waiting for what Cloud was going to say next.

"I'd like you to train...me."

Shocked would have been an understatement. When Cloud had walked into the room, Rei wasn't sure what she had been expecting, but it certainly wasn't this. She'd never had a person approach her and ask her personally for training. She'd only ever received recruits through the company, so when Cloud asked for her training, she was more than happy to oblige.

"It's rough training. Are you sure you're up for it?"

Cloud found himself strangely confident after his success and replied, "I'm sure."

For the first time in weeks, Rei felt her spark returning. She had a new student, and a new person to keep safe. In fact, she felt as if her reactions were almost mechanical, but nonetheless she was happy for the change.

'Maybe this was all I needed to help me move on.'

"Okay Cloud. Get ready because we start tomorrow."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Unfortunately for Cloud and Rei their training time was cut short. Only 2 weeks after becoming her student, there were reports of an attack at Junon, the place Hollander was being held for questioning. However, it wasn't the attacks that bothered Rei it was who was doing the attacking. Genesis copies. When Sephiroth brough her the news, he was adamant about her staying behind at headquarters with Cloud. Rei, however, would hear nothing of it.

"I know I'm still not completely over all of this. I probably never will be, but I can't just sit here while you and Zack risk your lives."

Sephiroth knew there was no arguing with her so he replied, "Very well, Mother. Please be careful."

Rei grinned and said, "Of course."

* * *

><p>Though her power had long since returned to her completely, Sephiroth and Zack still decided the best thing for her to do would be to evacuate as many citizens from Junon as she could. With both of them trying to keep her from fighting, it would have been fair to say she was irritated. But she knew they were only thinking of her well-being. She knew they didn't want her fighting the Genesis copies lest she become emotional and unable to defend herself. Still, the thought of both of them fighting without her there to tend to any of their wounds brought her much discomfort.<p>

She was met with an even bigger surprised while evacuating a woman and her baby. Down below her, she caught a flash of yellow, and instantly knew who it was.

'Cloud.'

She searched around him for the remainder of his squad but saw no one. He was fighting a large horde of mechs all by himself. Rei sped up her flight and dropped the woman and her child off outside of Junon along with the other people she'd evacuated. The only thing on her mind was getting to Cloud before he was severely wounded or killed.

* * *

><p>With the two dozen mechs surrounding him, Cloud was at a loss. He'd only begun his training with Rei and wasn't entirely sure what to do in the situation he was in. If he only had himself to worry about, he would try his best to clear a path and run through the mechanical monsters. However, the child sitting in the corner behind him kept him from this action. He kept glancing back at the young girl, trying to think of some way to save her and himself, but the mechs were closing in the longer he thought.<p>

'Think, Cloud. What would Sensei do?'

Despite the situation, Cloud had to laugh at himself a little bit, 'I know exactly what she would do. She would pick up the girl and fly away. Not much of an option for me, though.'

His heart began to race faster as he watched all of the mechs ready their weapons, and aim them at him. His only thought was the girl, so he turned towards her and wrapped his arms around her tightly, hoping that his body would be enough to shield her from the bullets. He could hear her sobbing against his chest, but that was all he heard. He didn't hear any gun shots and he didn't feel any pain. He was about to turn around to see what was going on when a sudden sound of loud, systematic sparks ran across the horde of mechs. He was unsure of what was happening, so he kept his grip on the little girl. The loud noise only scared her more, so her cries escalated.

When the noise stopped, Cloud once again tried to turn around, but he was halted when he felt a hand on his left bicep. Before he could find out who it was, he was being swept into the air. The little girl became hard to hold on to when she realized she was 100 feet off of the ground. Cloud kept his grip on her, and didn't need to look up to see who had hold of him.

"Thanks, Sensei."

Rei looked down on him and the little girl, grinned and said, "No problem. You need to be more careful the next time, though."

She flew the two of them to the outskirts of Junon with the other survivors. The woman she had rescued earlier ran towards her and began shouting, "Maya!"

The little girl heard the voice of the woman and released her grip on Cloud's shirt. She turned her face towards the woman and instantly began to struggle against Cloud's grip. He grinned and gently placed her on the ground. The woman, still holding the infant in her left arm, ran to the little girl.

"Mommy!"

Rei smiled and poked Cloud in the shoulder. Cloud turned towards her and grinned lightly.

"Come on, Cloud. There are still more people to rescue."

"Right."

* * *

><p>"Get back here, Hollander!"<p>

Sephiroth had ordered him to track down Hollander and to keep him from falling into the enemy's hands, but the chubby man was proving to be very slippery. Zack had cornered him a few times, but every time Hollander would send a small army of mechs after him, slowing him down and giving Hollander ample time to escape.

"Bastard!"

Hollander had managed to open the door to the airport dock, and was now well on his way to a helicopter.

'I have to stop him!'

"Do you see anyone else, Cloud?"

After rescuing 30 more people, Cloud found that flying above Junon proved to be a much easier method than running through the streets looking for people. He'd found a new appreciation for his Sensei's wings.

"No. I think we may have evacuated everyone."

The very large group of people on the outskirts of Junon were more than enough proof that they had completed their task. Rei's eyes were now scanning the area for Zack or Sephiroth.

As if reading her mind, Cloud said, "Should we look for Zack now, Sensei?"

Rei smiled and replied, "On it already. Keep your eyes peeled too, though."

"Okay."

* * *

><p>'How did I see this coming?'<p>

It had already happened many times, so it was not surprising when as soon as Zack entered the airport dock, Hollander sent a monstrous mech after him. As if its size wasn't menacing enough, the mech was in the shape of a scorpion. So it was to no shock to Zack when the mech came at him with its tail. He attempted to fight off the mech, but his thoughts were on Hollander.

'Dammit. Dammit. Dammit! Dammit!'

"Zack! Use electricity!" came an all too familiar voice from above him, "It'll cause a short-circuit!"

All Zack saw out of the corner of his eye was a sudden flash of white, grey, and yellow. He could tell Rei was headed in the direction of Hollander, so he was able to focus on the mech before him.

"All right, scorpio. Let's dance."

* * *

><p>Catching up with Hollander was pitifully easy from the air, so it wasn't long before Rei and Cloud had the scientist cornered at the edge of the dock. However, even with a soldier and a powerful mage staring him down, there was not a hint of fear in Hollander's eyes.<p>

"Surrender, Hollander." Rei demanded, ignoring the scientist's smugness, "You don't have your special knife to save you this time."

Hollander smirked and said, "That may be true, but I won't need it. If you honestly thought you could keep me here, you're a fool."

Rei was not fazed by the scientist's words and replied, "And if you think I'm going to let you get away you are a fool."

"Just try to stop me!"

Even knowing that Rei could easily follow him, Hollander stepped off of the edge of the dock and let himself fall towards the water below. Rei knew that Hollander was too weak of a man to kill himself, so she leapt off of the edge after him to stop him from reaching his fail safe. However, all of her resolve faded when she came upon a familiar face dressed in brown hair and mahogany eyes.

"Genesis."

The eyes that stared back were those of emptiness. She didn't see the same hate and malice that she normally saw, so she knew immediately that the being before her was not Genesis. Nonetheless, she was unable to raise a hand to the copy. She knew that if she didn't stop the copy it would fly away with Hollander. She knew full well, and yet she did not stop it. Cursing herself for her weakness, she watched the copy fly away with Hollander.

From the dock above, Rei could hear Sephiroth calling out to her. She knew what he was thinking the second she looked up to him. He was questioning her heavily with his eyes, but at the same time she could see understanding. She looked back towards the Genesis copy and could see it disappearing into the sunlight before she flapped her wings and floated back up to the dock.

As soon as her feet touched the concrete, she hung her head in utter shame. Sephiroth tried to question her, but his questions fell on deaf ears.

'I'm supposed to be a good teacher. What kind of example am I setting for Cloud if I let the enemy escape?'

As if he had read her mind, Cloud said kindly, "Sensei. It's okay. We all make mistakes sometimes. Even you aren't perfect."

His words were appreciated, but Rei couldn't shake the guilt and anger she felt towards herself.

'What's happened to me? I've become so weak and feeble. I'm supposed to be the boogeyman of the Shinra company, but I've become the weak link in the chain.'

"Mother. Stop second guessing yourself," Sephiroth said sternly, "You may have superhuman strengths, but you are still human. You can't expect to completely banish your human emotions every time you enter the battlefield."

Rei found herself irritated and exclaimed, "And why not! These "human emotions" have caused me more trouble than any enemy I've ever faced! I've been defeated by them countless times, and it makes me feel like a weakling! I'm supposed to be a warrior! Not an emotionally damaged woman!"

Sephiroth reached his hand out and drove it into a nearby wall, breaking Rei from her trance of self pity, "Stop it, Mother! You've been through more pain in this past year than most people go through in their entire lives! The fact that you're here right now shows your strength and will power! I'll not hear you talk down about yourself anymore! Understand!"

Before her eyes, Sephiroth underwent the change she had been hoping for since he first picked up his sword. He'd finally broken his shell and given _her_ an order instead of following her every move. And he'd given the order in such a stern yet caring manner that she couldn't disobey even if she wished it.

Without a word, she moved towards Sephiroth and wrapped her arms around him, leaning her head against his chest.

As soon as he felt the contact, Sephrioth's first thought was, 'Dammit! I made her cry.'

However, he found he had been entirely mistaken when he heard no sniffling and felt no wetness against his chest. He placed his hands on her shoulders lightly, still wondering what she was thinking.

"I'm proud of you, Sephrioth. Thank you."

Sephiroth made no reply and simply wrapped his arms tightly around her. If Rei hadn't known any better, she would have thought she felt something wet drip into her hair.

* * *

><p>When Sephiroth walked into her bedroom and told her that she, Sephiroth, Zack and Cloud had been given orders to investigate Nibelheim, Rei didn't think anything of it. She'd been briefed and de-briefed about the multiplying Genesis copies many times. President Shinra had even called a special meeting of all of the Shinra elites. Unfortunately, she'd had to bear the presence of Hojo during the meeting as well.<p>

President Shinra explained many times the growing threat the Genesis copies posed to his company. He also made it very clear that they were all to be eliminated, speaking mostly to Rei, Sephiroth, and Zack. When the meeting concluded, he pulled Rei off to the side to have a private chat.

"Listen to me, Rei. I will not tolerate any more weakness and failure from you. You are one of my most powerful soldiers, and you have been behaving like a child. You think you are too powerful for me to control, but you're not. Remember the knife Hollander stabbed you with? It would be hard for you to forget."

Rei did not speak, only nodded.

"I had the knife delivered to Doctor Hojo. He oh so graciously took the same idea and modified it. We now have a wide variety of bullets infused with Jenova cells, everything from 9mm to 45 caliber. If you return from your mission a failure again, I won't hesitate to have them tested."

Glad Sephiroth and Zack had not been listening in, Rei replied, "Yes sir."

On a normal day, Rei would have told the old man where he could shove it. However, he knew there was some truth to his words.

'You win this time old man. Next time though.'

"When do we have to leave for Nibelheim, Sephiroth?"

"The order was as soon as possible."

Over in the training room, Cloud and Zack were having a sparring match to test Cloud's new abilities. The young man had surprised Rei thoroughly. He'd taken to her training faster than any of her other students. He had no trouble with the hours, and he never seemed in a bad mood. His drive was so great it was as if her training was fulfilling some kind of deep commitment. Even Zack was surprised by Cloud's progress. When they had sparred the first day of Cloud's training, Cloud had been knocked for a complete loop. Now he was able to hold off most of Zack's attacks. He was still unable to fight back, though.

"I see he's improved," Sephiroth inquired.

Rei smiled and looked towards the training room, "Yes he has. The only thing he doesn't seem to be very good at is magic. He struggles with it a lot, but I guess we weren't all born to be mages."

Though the two friends looked like they were having a good time, Rei knew they had to leave for Nibelheim and headed towards the room.

"Why are you so nervous, Cloud?"

As soon as the group stepped out of the truck outside of Nibelheim, Cloud's face went pale and he began shaking. Rei noticed his odd behavior immediately and was not about to let it go unquestioned. She became even more concerned when he suddenly rushed back to the truck to retrieve his helmet.

"I'm sorry, Sensei. I just haven't...been home in a while."

Rei grinned and asked, "Then shouldn't you be happy? You haven't seen your family and friends in a long time."

Cloud took his helmet and placed it onto his head, concealing his face, "It's complicated."

It was clear that Cloud had some demons to deal with, so Rei didn't want to push him. Instead she simply placed a hand on his shoulder and flashed him a quick smile.

"Okay, but while you're here feel free to visit friends and family whenever you want to."

Cloud smiled back and said, "Okay."

Sephiroth and Zack were already at the entrance of the inn waiting for the two of them to catch up, so Rei motioned for Cloud to follow and went towards the inn as well.

* * *

><p>As soon as the sun came up the next morning, Rei was waking everyone up besides Sephiroth when a young woman suddenly ran into the room. She had long black hair, wore a cowgirl hat along with a white shirt, brown vest, and brown skirt. Her brown eyes held fire and confidence.<p>

'I wish I could train her. She looks like she'd be an interesting student to have.'

"Are you the people from Shinra who are supposed to be investigating the mako reactor?" the girl suddenly asked.

Rei was surprised by her directness, but nonetheless replied, "Yes we are. Who are you?"

The young woman sighed and said, "My name is Tifa. I'm gonna be your guide up to the reactor today."

Though the girl was young, Rei could see by her fiery attitude that she would have no problem leading them through the monsters on the way to the reactor. Her toned legs and arms also spoke for themselves.

"Do you receive martial arts training, Tifa?"

Tifa was shocked by the question and replied, "Y-Yes. How did you know?"

Rei grinned and said, "You just seem the type, that's all. You have the attitude and energy to show it."

Tifa was unsure of what to say to the compliment, so she said, "Okay well whenever you all are ready I'll be waiting outside of the inn."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

*Okay I have had many people criticize me for this chapter, when you get to the end you will see why and I will elaborate more then.*

Rei followed close behind Tifa while Zack and Sephiroth stood to either side of her as they all trekked towards the mako reactor. With three soldiers surrounding her on all sides, Tifa faced no problems from the monsters surrounding the reactor. Cloud and a second infantryman followed behind Rei. Cloud had not spoken a word since they had left the hotel. Rei told herself to let it be, but she was still worried nonetheless. She'd never seen her young student behave in such a manner.

Eventually, the reactor came into sight and they approached the door. Tifa obviously wanted to go inside with them, but Rei had to stop her.

"I'm sorry, Tifa. Shinra sent us to this reactor for a reason, and if something were to go wrong we can't risk you being hurt. Please stay out here. The two infantrymen will make sure you are protected."

Behind her, Rei could sense that Cloud was grateful for her not saying his name, and he grinned slightly. Tifa, though irritated, understood and walked back down the stairs towards Cloud. Rei, along with Sephiroth and Zack, entered the reactor.

She'd seen many mako reactors in the past, but never had she seen one of this kind. In three rows were large, metal tanks with circular glass on the front of each. Between the rows was a staircase which led to a brown steel door. Above the door, the name Jenova was carved into the wall. Rei's eyes fell instantly on the name and she gasped aloud.

"Mother? What's wrong?" Sephiroth immediately asked.

Rei reached out her hand and pointed to the name on the wall. When Sephiroth glimpsed the name, he was not surprised.

"You knew they had to keep her somewhere. Mother. Otherwise where would those pieces on your body have come from?"

"I know. But to think. All of this time, this is where they've kept her. In a simple reactor outside of a small town. It's a bit anticlimactic."

Sephiroth grinned and approached one of the metal tanks. He peered through the glass and was met with a gruesome sight.

"Abominations."

The being inside of the tank looked like it had crawled out of a radioactive sewer. Instead of hair, it had long, blue spikes jutting out of the back of its head. Long claws grew where its fingernails and toenails should have been. Fur ran from its ankles to the tops of its legs. Though its mouth was only partially opened, Sephiroth could see fangs barely showing from behind its lips.

When Sephiroth looked away in disgust, Rei instantly took his place in front of the tank. She was not as disgusted as he had been, but the being was still horrid to behold.

"So this is what the Shinra science department does with their free time? Disgusting."

Zack had moved to another tank and had found the same monstrosity, "What are these things, Sensei?"

Rei turned away from the tank and replied, "Monsters. Monsters created from mako energy and Jenova cells. These creatures were most likely human before, but they suffered from too much mako and lost their human selves. To think. That could be me in there."

She expected Sephiroth to become irritated with her for the statement, but even he had to admit that she was right. Had the experiment with her gone wrong, she could have easily become one of the monsters in those tanks.

Zack was still troubled by the situation and asked, "So how are we different from these things? We have Jenova cells in us too. How come we're normal and these things aren't?"

Rei was going to explain, but before she could speak, "You are a member of Soldier. You were given Jenova cells in a small amount in order to give you your strength. All normal Soldier members are given this gift. The creatures in these tanks were given an overdose of both mako and Jenova cells. They are monstrosities created as tests subjects for a greater cause."

The explanation was sufficient, but Zack was still curious about one thing, "You said "normal" Soldier members. What about you?"

Rei instantly shifted to protective mode and exclaimed, "Zack!"

However, her warning came too late. When she looked over to her son, the look on his face had changed completely. Confusion, confliction, pain, uncertainty, wonder, and anguish. That's what she saw painted on his face. He held his hands out in front of his face and he began to tremble.

"A-Am I...really...the same as...these monstrosities?"

Rei did not hesitate and answered sharply, "No! No you're not! Don't even think that!"

"But why shouldn't he "Sensei"?"

The all too familiar voice sent shivers down her spine. The voice, which she had previously been very happy to hear, now filled her with dread and pain. Fire flew past her head, struck Zack, and then dissipated. She was about to run to him, when she felt a sudden pain in her left arm.

"Osmose."

She was ready for it that time and she whispered, "No. Not this time. Barrier."

Genesis was clearly shocked by his former Sensei's swift reaction time, but he still said maniacally, "I see you've learned from your many mistakes, but it won't matter in a few moments. I'm going to tell Sephiroth the truth, and you are not going to stop me."

"Genesis! Why are you doing this! Why are you trying to set fire to everything!"

As if annoyed, Genesis sighed and said, "We've had this discussion before haven't we? I told you that I will do anything to make sure I survive, and if I can't survive, this world will die with me. Do I really need to repeat myself anymore?"

Despite his cruelty and his malice, Rei could not raise a hand to him, and she collapsed onto her knees, "Genesis."

"You are powerless, Sensei. You should never have made us stronger than you."

Genesis indifferently moved past her and approached Sephiroth, "Now Sephiroth, I will tell you the truth that she has kept from you your entire life."

"Genesis. Stop," Rei pleaded.

Genesis ignored her and said, "Do you know the name of your real mother? She's known her name your whole life but she's never told you. I don't know what pretty little pictures you've made up in your head, but your real mother's name is Jenova. The same woman whose body parts Sensei holds."

Rei could see Sephiroth's face instantly change from confused to angry. His eyes flashed towards her, and they seemed to pierce through her.

"It's not true, Sephiroth!" Rei shouted, "Jenova was not your mother! I knew your mother! Her name was-!"

A hand being brought down across her face was efficient to silence her. The hand had all too clearly belonged to Genesis. Her face hit the ground hard, and she instantly pushed herself back up.

"Genesis! Stop this! You know as well as I do that Jenova is not Sephiroth's mother! Stop lying to him!"

Genesis grinned and said, "What? You mean like you have been lying to him? I know something else you never told him."

"Stop it!"

"She never told you that Jenova, your mother, was harvested from a 2000-year-old rock layer. She's a fossil, a powerful fossil."

"Stop it Genesis! Jenova is not his mother!"

Continuing to ignore her, Genesis said, "Even now she continues to lie to you, Sephiroth. Even now she denies her guilt. But I know you're smart enough to see the truth. Join me. Help me, and together we will reform this planet and stop those foolish enough to toy with our lives."

Sephiroth had since turned away from Genesis and Rei and had buried his eyes into the name on the wall. In the name, he saw a past and a future that didn't exist.

"All I need is your cells, Sephiroth. That will save me, and after that we can take our revenge."

Sephiroth tore his eyes away from the name on the wall, and his hate-filled eyes fell on Genesis, "I don't care if she's lying or if you are. No matter what happens, you will rot."

Rei expected Genesis to react in a violent and impulsive manner, but he did not. Instead, he simply replied, "I see. Very well. Wallow in your self pity for a while. See how far it gets you. Perhaps we will meet again one day old friend. Until then, think on what she has hidden from you."

Genesis did not stay to hear a response. He flapped his one black wing and flew swiftly out of the building.

As soon as he was gone, Rei turned her attention immediately back to Sephiroth. Genesis' words had left him in a complete spin, and she could see the mixed emotions behind his eyes.

"Sephiroth," she pleaded, "Please don't listen to what he said. None of it was true."

As if making fun of her, Sephiroth chuckled and replied, "How can I believe you? You lied to Angeal and Genesis for years by not telling them about the horrible experiments they were put through. You didn't tell them anything, and now look what's become of them. Even earlier, you admitted to knowing my real mother's name. You didn't even tell me that much? Why?"

Rei fought back the tears forming behind her eyes and exclaimed, "Because she doesn't deserve to be called your mother! I'm your mother! I protected you! I made you strong! I have always been there! She's nothing but a monster!"

By the time Rei realized what she had said she was too late. "Monster." That is what she had called Sephiroth's real mother. That is what she had called her.

"So you admit it, then? My mother was a monster. That means I am too."

Rei shook her head wildly and said, "No! That's not what I meant!"

"Enough! I will find out the answers for myself! I will find out what you have been hiding, and I will find out who my real mother is! Don't bother following me!"

"Sephiroth!"

Her call fell on uncaring ears, as Sephiroth ran from the reactor and towards Shinra Manor.

* * *

><p>6 days later<p>

Through much convincing on the part of Zack and Cloud, Rei had left Sephiroth alone. Zack had assured her that once Sephiroth thought about the whole thing, he would realize that what Genesis had told him was complete nonsense. However, after having locked himself inside Shinra Manor for six days, Rei was not so sure. She had not seen him act this way since he had researched Project G.

On the night of the sixth day, Rei waited for Zack and Cloud to fall asleep, or so she thought, and slipped out of the hotel. Her destination was obviously Shinra Manor. When she pushed the doors of the large mansion open, a cold chill ran down her spine. Something told her that to enter would bring her nothing but pain. But she could not bring herself to submit to the danger. Her son was in the mansion doing Odin knows what.

'Sephiroth. Please don't be beyond my reach. I can't lose you. Not you.'

* * *

><p>"Cloud. Cloud wake up. Cloud."<p>

The voice of his mentor, shook Cloud out of his dreams. When he opened his eyes, he saw a frantic look on Zack's face.

"Zack? What's wrong?"

Zack wasted no time in answering, "Sensei just took off for Shinra Manor. We have to follow her."

Cloud rubbed his eyes lightly and asked, "Do you really think Sephiroth will hurt her?"

Zack shook his head, "I don't know. If you had asked me that question a week ago I would have said 'Hell no', but right now I'm not sure what Sephiroth is capable of. We have to make sure Sensei is safe no matter what."

Cloud was not about to argue and said, "Okay. Let's go."

* * *

><p>After descending the stairs into the basement of the manor, Rei finally found the room Sephiroth had closed himself up in. The room was filled with books, research notes, and scraps of paper. In the middle of the plethora of immorality was Sephiroth. A book was clenched tightly in his hand, and his eyes scanned the pages like a man possessed.<p>

As soon as he noticed her presence, the book slammed shut, and his eyes fell on her. The eyes she saw before her belonged to a different person. She could see nothing of her son behind the pine green irises. He stepped towards her, and her first instinct was to back away.

"I know the truth now. I know my purpose as well as yours."

The closer he came to her, the more her fear heightened. She searched desperately for a hint of sanity in him, but she could find nothing. All she saw was madness and obsession.

"What are you talking about, Sephiroth?"

"My mother. I know why she sent you to me. I know why she gave you pieces of herself. It was all so obvious I can't believe I didn't figure it out sooner."

Genesis' ranting had left a bigger impact on him than Rei had realized. He actually believed that Jenova was his mother.

"Mother came to this planet after a long journey through the universe. She found the inhabitants of it to be unworthy of the lives they had been given, so she began to destroy them. However, the treacherous cretins overpowered mother and locked her away before her goal could be realized.

"Now she has been reborn in me and in you, as well as all of the people who share her cells. I know why she sent you to me. She sent you to make me powerful, so the two of us could complete her dream. The people who inhabited the planet all of those years ago were inferior, so she wished to remake the planet in her image, the image of and Ancient."

The more he spoke, the more Rei could feel him slipping away from her. The shift in his personality and state of mind was so sudden, she felt as if it had to be a nightmare. However, she found it was all too real when he finally backed her into a wall.

"It is our job to make sure this world is re-created in her image. The world must be filled with her offspring. That is why she gave you pieces of herself, in order to make your body capable of bearing her children. She knew no mere human could so it, so she gave you all of the tools you needed. She gave you her strength, and she gave you me. The two of us will make sure this world thrives with mother's children."

She didn't want to believe what she was hearing. Her son, the one she had raised from an infant, the one whose diapers she had changed, the one whose injuries she had always attended to, the one who she had given baths, the one who she had held when he was sad, the one who she had always taken care of was now speaking of the unspeakable.

"Sephiroth...you can't be serious. I'm your mother."

The statement angered Sephiroth and he sharply replied, "No! You were merely acting as such in order to make me stronger! It's what mother planned, and it's what came to be. You were never meant to be my mother, only a vessel for Jenova's children. Now you will fulfill your purpose."

A nightmare. It had to be a nightmare. She kept telling herself what was happening wasn't real. The hands pushing her to the ground, the pressure of a torso against hers, the heavy breaths against her chest, the feeling of a stiffness against her inner thigh, it all had to be a nightmare. Even when a hand reached down to the zipper on her jumpsuit and pulled it down, she couldn't let herself believe it was happening.

'Wake up, Rei. This can't be happening. Wake up. Make things go back to the way they were before. Wake up. Wake up. WAKE UP!'

The sudden pressure and pain in the lower region of her body did not break her delusions. The panting, the pushing, and the sweating could not convince her. The blood painting her inner thighs would not be seen as possible.

'Wake up now! Wake up! Give me back my son! Wake up!'

"Sensei!"

"Sephiroth! What the hell are you doing!"

She recognized the voices, but she was unable to look towards them. The shock was too much, and she faded into blackness.

*I have had many people outside of this site accuse me of incest. This is in no way incest. True it is deeply disturbing and immoral, but Sephiroth has lost his mind. If you find this chapter repulsive, I am sorry, but I thought I explained the logic of this scene enough for those with open minds to realize that this is not some kind of sick fantasy of mine, but it is in fact a genuine plot twist. You all can come to your own conclusions. Next chapter will be up soon.*


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

When she regained consciousness, the first thing she hoped was that she was going to open her eyes and see the walls of her bedroom back at Shinra. She had never really liked those four white walls before, but at that moment she would have given anything to see them. She would have given anything to wake up to the sound of her alarm clock, to pound on the doors of her students and tell them to get to training, to take Cloud into her training room and help him learn to fight with more skill. The grim reality that surrounded her offered no such comforts.

She opened her eyes and found herself in a dark, dank room surrounded by black coffins. The only light in the room came from a small lantern hanging from the ceiling. The second the walls of Shinra Manor became visible to her, the sudden realization of what had occurred drove her to sickness. She had never vomited before in her life, but after the memory attacked her, she emptied her stomach onto the floor next to her. Her sickness was only heightened when she glimpsed the blood stain on her gray jump suit.

Her entire body ached with bruises and filth, and the only thing she could do was sit there and think about it. Think about what had just occurred, think about how if she had never been brought into the world, none of this would have happened. Heavy breaths escaped from her chest, and she clenched her body up into a tight ball.

How she managed to hear it through the sound of her own heavy breaths she didn't know, but from the other side of the room, she heard what sounded like light snoring. Not the kind of pig-like snoring she would hear from Zack's room every night, but a calm sort of snoring you might hear from a child. Taking the opportunity to remove her thoughts from the situation she faced, she quieted herself to try to find where the sound was coming from.

Her skin crawled when she realized the snoring was coming from the coffin just opposite of her. The thought of someone sleeping inside of a coffin was a grim idea, but at that moment it was definitely the lesser of two evils. She removed herself from the clenched ball, and she managed to push herself to her feet. She ignored the pain and slowly approached the coffin.

When she reached the wooden death trap, she knelt down beside it. The idea of opening it still chilled her a bit, but nonetheless, she placed her hands onto the top of the coffin.

As soon as she began to push the lid aside, she heard, "Sensei!"

The beautifully familiar voice broke her curiosity about the person in the coffin, and she turned towards her black-haired student.

"Zack!"

Zack did not hesitate and ran to her swiftly. He captured her in his powerful arms.

"I'm sorry, Sensei. I should have...been there."

The sickness in Zack's voice was apparent, and Rei replied, "Don't blame yourself. If I had told Sephiroth the truth from the beginning, this would not have happened."

She wanted to break down into tears. She wanted to cling to Zack like she did the day Genesis ran away, but she knew that crying would only make things harder for Zack and herself.

"I know you've just been through hell, but we have to get you out of here, Sensei. Sephiroth has set fire to Nibelheim."

Rei's eyes widened and she exclaimed, "What!"

Zack lifted Rei to her feet and took a tight hold of her hand, "He's taken off towards the Mako reactor. Tifa followed him, so I sent Cloud after her to stop her from doing something stupid. Now I'm getting you out of Nibelheim."

Rei shook her head adamantly and said sternly, "No you're not. It's like you told me before, I have more than one child. I'm not going to run away while you and Cloud risk your lives. I'll not lose you too."

"But Sensei-"

"Don't bother arguing with me. I'm going with you whether Sephiroth is still at the reactor or not."

Zack shook his head and answered, "What if he tries to do it again! You can't expect me to take that kind of risk. It was horrible enough seeing it once!"

Rei was quick with her reply, "And you can't expect me to sit here while you go off into possible death! You've seen what Sephiroth was willing to do to me! There's no telling what he would do to you!"

Zack, who normally was very open to an argument hung his head and asked, "I'm not going to talk you out of this am I?"

Rei, both pleased and displeased answered, "No."

Though he was angry with her for being so stubborn, Zack squeezed her hand and said, "All right, Sensei. Let's go."

Rei managed to force a smile and nodded her head.

* * *

><p>For Zack, approaching the reactor with his Sensei at his side was enough to drive him to murder. The very thought of the earlier events repeating themselves put Zack in a state of protectiveness that he didn't know he had.<p>

Rei could sense the hostility, and said reassuringly, "It won't happen again, Zack."

Zack wanted to believe her, but after witnessing it first hand, he wasn't so sure. He lead her up the stairs of the reactor, and he pushed the door slowly open. Instead of seeing Sephiroth, they were met with another grim sight. On the floor, bleeding from her left shoulder was Tifa. The wound did not look to be too severe, but Rei rushed to her side nonetheless.

"Tifa! Are you all right! Talk to me!" Rei pleaded.

The young girl looked up at Rei with hate-filled eyes, "You Shinra! You Soldiers! I HATE you all! I hate you!"

Rei knew not to take Tifa's outburst to heart. The girl had just watched her home town burn and her friends and family be murdered.

"I'm sorry, Tifa. But even if you hate me, I'm not going to let you die. Sleep."

Rei was certain that if she had tried to help Tife while she was conscious, the teenager would have pushed her away. With her being asleep, there would be no such struggling. Her hand glowed green, and she placed it over the still bleeding wound.

"Sensei!"

Zack's voice did not distract her from healing the wound, but it did get her attention. When she turned towards him, her anxiety tripled. On the floor next to Zack was Cloud. His wounds appeared to be much more severe than the one Tifa had suffered.

She wasted no time in rushing to Cloud's side. As soon as she reached him, Zack moved away and began to walk up the stairs towards the now open door leading to Jenova.

"Zack!" Rei exclaimed, "Be careful."

Zack nodded and continued on up the stairs. Rei turned her attention back to Cloud. He was in far worse condition than she'd ever seen him. Sephiroth had not shown the slightest bit of mercy towards him. The wound ran from his left shoulder, all the way down to his lower stomach. He should have been in pain, but adrenaline combined with shock prevented him from feeling it.

"T-Tifa," he mumbled beneath his breath.

Rei's hands glowed at the same time and she said calmly, "Don't worry, Cloud. Tifa is fine. Now don't move."

Her hands touched the wound, and it ever too slowly began to pull itself together. Her anxiety prevented her from healing the wound as quickly as she normally would have. This mistake proved to be fatal, when she saw Zack fly out of Jenova's room, and smash into one of the metal tanks holding the strange creatures.

Emerging from the room behind him was Sephiroth, his sword drawn and covered in blood. Beneath her hands, the wound was still healing, but with the emergence of Sephiroth, her stress level was higher than it had ever been. His eyes fell on her immediately and she cringed beneath his gaze. As if knowing she would run if he walked towards her, Sephiroth leapt down the stairs towards her. Before she was able to move away from him, he wrapped his left arm around her shoulders, and pulled her against his chest.

"You see, mother?" he said to Jenova in the next room, "I've already begun to fulfill your dream."

He reached his right hand down to Rei's stomach and placed his hand over it gently.

"The wheels are already turning. It won't be long now, mother."

She couldn't move. Her hands were still pressed over Cloud's wounded chest, but the rest of her was frozen in place. The feeling of Sephiroth's hands on her was unlike anything she'd ever felt. The disgust, fear, pain and torment were too much for her.

"S-Sephiroth," came Zack's voice from behind her, "Get your...hands off of her."

Sephiroth did release Rei, but not because Zack told him to. He released her so he could join his 'mother' in the other room. Beneath Rei's hands, the wound had finally sealed itself completely, and Cloud's eyes slowly opened. When he glimpsed his Sensei, his anger was apparent.

"Cloud. You're okay now."

Cloud shook his head and pushed himself up onto his feet, "No I'm not, Sensei. After what I just saw, I'm not okay. And neither will Sephiroth in a few seconds."

Rei looked over at Zack and found his buster sword lying on the ground next to the metal tank. She knew what Cloud planned to do, and she knew she couldn't stop him. Sephiroth was on a mission to destroy everything just like Genesis. So when Cloud picked up the buster sword and charged towards Sephiroth, she simply turned her head and waited for the repercussions. She heard footsteps followed by metal tearing flesh and breaking glass.

Cursing her instincts, she turned her face back towards Cloud. The buster sword was running all the way through Sephiroth's body and sticking through the glass holding Jenova. She continued to watch as Cloud pulled the sword back out of Sephiroth's body.

"How dare you," Sephiroth mumbled, "You inferior cretin."

It happened so fast, Cloud couldn't even see it coming. Sephiroth drew his sword back, and thrust it right through Cloud's abdomen.

From the bottom of the stairs, Rei shouted, "Cloud!"

Next to her, Zack mumbled, "S-Sensei. Heal me...so I can...help him."

Rei did not hesitate, and rushed to Zack's side. The wound he'd taken was in the area of the spleen, so Rei knew it was severe. She tried to clear her mind and placed her hands over the wound. However, as soon as her hands began to glow green, she heard what sounded like a gasp from the Jenova room.

"I-Impossible."

When Rei returned her attention to Cloud, she was shocked to see Sephiroth's sword still stuck through his body, but Sephiroth suspended in the air above him.

"Cloud?"

Cloud glared intently at Sephiroth and said, "This is for Sensei, Tifa, and Nibelheim, you bastard!"

Cloud gripped tightly to the sword and turned his entire body towards the wall beside him. Sephiroth struck the wall hard and lost his grip on his sword. With nothing holding him up, he fell immediately into the sea of mako below the reactor. With the enemy gone, Cloud pulled the sword from his abdomen, and he hit the floor.

From the other room, Rei had not quite let the situation sink in. True she had just witnessed her son fall to his death, but she knew she had to keep her head long enough to make sure Zack and Cloud were safe.

However, fate once again proved cruel when she heard a gun shot, and then felt a sudden pain in her lower back. When she turned to see where the shot had come from, she was met with thye sight of a man she'd hoped to never see again.

"Well well well it seems you have failed your mission, Rei. President Shinra has ordered me to terminate you as well as your students."

Rei glared back him and muttered, "Hojo."

"Oh but don't worry. I have no intention of terminating any of you. What would be the fun in that? No I think I will take this opportunity to experiment further on the lot of you. There are always new things to discover after all."

Hojo motioned for the men behind him to move in. Three of them headed up the stairs towards Cloud while three more headed towards Zack. Rei's protective instincts kicked in and she raised her hands towards the six men.

Hojo noticed her actions and pulled a very familiar silver pistol from his lab coat. He pointed it towards Rei, and shot a second Jenova cell infused bullet into her back. This time, the bullet passed through her lung.

Despite the pain, Rei's hands did not move and glowed a bright red. Hojo, as if irritated, scoffed and shot her once more, tearing through her diaphragm.

The third bullet still did not stop her, and she released the fire spell towards the men holding Zack. The spell struck one of the men, but the other two remained untouched.

Hojo, now more irritated, snapped, "Why do you continue to fight you foolish girl! It is pointless!"

He squeezed the trigger on the gun once more, and the fourth bullet proved too much for Rei to handle, even with her students' lives in jeopardy.

The last thing she saw before she lost consciousness was Hojo's disgusting, malicious grin.

* * *

><p>"Wake up. Waaaaaake up little Rei."<p>

The voice was so disturbing, opening her eyes was the last thing Rei wanted to do. She couldn't move her arms or her legs, so she knew she was restrained. A massive pain in her abdomen told the story of injury. The bright light on the other side of her eyelids suggested a laboratory, or perhaps a surgical infirmary.

"I know you're awake, girl. You may as well open your eyes and get it over with."

Though she hated listening to the mad scientist, she knew that keeping her eyes shut would only make her situation more difficult. She peeled her eyes open and was met with a sudden flash of white light. When her pupils adjusted to the extra light, she was able to lift her head to look around the room. The room was completely empty save for a heart-rate monitor, and a small fold out chair next to her. Her nude body was strapped to a metal table by reinforced steel bars.

On the wall in front of her was a giant sheet of glass. On the other side of the glass sat Hojo along with three other white coats.

"Hello, Rei. Sleep well?"

Rei was not going to give him the pleasure of an answer and shouted, "Hojo! What have you done with Zack and Cloud! Answer me you bastard!"

However, when she yelled, she found the pain in her abdomen growing worse. When Hojo noticed her reaction, he pointed down towards her lower body. Rei peered down towards her abdomen, and found four seven-inch knives sticking out of her. The blades were completely submerged in her abdomen, leaving only the handles exposed.

"Jenova-cell-infused knives just for you, girl. Now you won't be able to cast any magic or have any hope of breaking through your restraints."

The pain was tolerable, but hearing the disgusting old man talk was more than Rei could handle. The more he talked, the more she wanted to kill him.

"Now I bet you are wondering what exactly we're going to do to you. It's very simple. We've managed to put five pieces of Jenova's body into you so far. We want to see just how many pieces we can put into your body before you die. That way when we find a new test subject, we will know what the limit is."

The thought of Hojo forcing another woman to go through what she's had to go through made her sick, and she said sharply, "You will not keep me here, Hojo. I will get away whether you like it or not."

Hojo chuckled and replied, "We'll see won't we?"

Hojo motioned for his scientists to follow him, and he quietly left the room. As soon as the scientists were out of sight, Rei flexed her abdomen muscles once. When she did, she noticed a very slight hint of sliver show from the knife blades. She waited 20 seconds and did it again. She knew that there were probably hidden cameras in the room, so she had to be careful not to look suspicious. She waited another 20 seconds and flexed the muscles again.

'If I can keep this up for a while, I can push the knives out. This is gonna take a long time. Cloud, Zack, please be safe. I'm going to get out of here as soon as I can.'


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

*4 years later*

Finally, after building up the strength in her abdominal muscles for longer than she could imagine, Rei had managed to build up enough strength to push out the knives. However, she couldn't push them out while Hojo and his goons were present. She knew that if she tried to escape while they were in witness, they would simply shoot her down with the Jenova cell infused bullets.

As she looked down at her now altered body, her hatred for Hojo only grew. Her previous 5 Jenova pieces had multiplied to 20. She had a piece wrapped around her neck like a choker, one around each wrist and ankle, two going across her forehead and just barely not meeting in the middle, she had two circling her bellybutton, two large pieces going down vertically over her shoulder blades, one circled around her waist like a belt, and three formed a sort of triangle on her lower back.

Though the extra pieces angered her immensely, she knew that with all of the power they gave her, she would not be easy to capture again once she escaped. Hojo had relied too heavily on the knives.

"Good night little Rei. We'll be back with another piece in the morning."

After saying his final goodnight, Hojo closed the door behind him and disappeared down the hallway, confident that his prisoner would still be there when he returned the next day. She grinned maliciously at the old man's ignorance.

'Okay I can do it now. I hope this works.'

Though it was exceedingly painful, Rei lifted her head slightly off of the table, and flexed the torn muscles in her abdomen as hard as she could. The blades raised themselves five inches out of her flesh, but they did not move any further than that. When she let the muscle relax, the blades sunk back down only four inches.

'Yes! One inch. Maybe if I can keep it up...'

She raised her head and flexed once again. The blades raised up another five inches, and she felt one of them begin to shake.

'That's it. Fall you little bastard.'

The knife the furthest away from her shook in place once, and then fell on its side. With the absence of just one of the knives, Rei could feel strength returning to her.

'Let's see if it's enough.'

She closed her eyes and tried to focus all of her energy into her wrists.

'If I can just get one good fire spell. Come on.'

She was met with both joy and disappointment when she managed to release a fire spell, but it was not powerful enough to melt through the metal holding her.

'Dammit. Not enough. Guess I'm gonna have to get another one of these blasted things out.'

She turned her attention back to the knives in her abdomen. Deciding not to waste any more energy than was necessary, she slowly brought her muscles into a flexing position, hoping she could get another one of the knives to fall out.

The knives only rose up four inches, but the four inches was enough to bring another of the knives out to its tip. She smiled with happiness and triumph as a second knife fell onto its side and out of her flesh. Another large wave of power circulated through her, and she was certain that she had enough energy to burn the metal around her wrists.

She focused all of her energy into her wrists again. This time, the flames shot out through her pores like she'd wanted them to. The small, but powerful, fire engulfed the metal completely. Though it was painful, Rei kept the fire going until the metal began to melt away. Her eyes widened as small droplets of molten metal began to drip down onto the steel table below her.

When enough of the metal had melted away, Rei pulled her wrists forward as hard as she could. The metal gave way easily and she was able to break her hands free. The relief she felt after being able to sit up was breathtaking.

'Thank Odin.'

She knew, however, that she could waste no time in releasing her feet from their prison, so she removed the other two knives from her stomach before reaching her hands down to her ankles. Without the hindrance of the knives, Rei easily melted through the metal, and her feet were free.

She expected to have difficulty walking, but as soon as her feet touched the ground she was able to stand perfectly. She chalked it up to the new pieces of Jenova.

'Okay I have to find something to wear. I can't go flying around in my birthday suit.'

In the next room, through the glass she could see a coat rack. Hanging from it was a white lab coat that buttoned up the front. Thinking it was better than nothing she approached the door to the room. Foolishly, Hojo had left the door unlocked.

'He was really relying on those bars to keep me restrained. Fool.'

She rushed into the room and ran straight towards the lab coat. She took it and wrapped it around herself swiftly.

'Not much of an outfit, but it will have to suffice for now.'

Without giving the room behind her a second look, Rei raised her hand above her head. Her hand glowed red and orange. The flames swirling around her hand seemed to wave goodbye to the ceiling as she released a large amount of concentrated energy out of her hand. The weak ceiling fell apart like old cheese, and the roof quickly followed it.

From another room, Rei could see a flashing red light and she should hear the sound of an alarm. However, the two disturbances were of little concern to her, and she released her wings. The blood she expected to trickle down her back was non-existent. She grinned slightly, and flapped her wings heavily. Before Hojo was even able to return to the building, Rei was far out of sight.

* * *

><p>"Hang in there, Cloud. I'll take care of these guys. You just rest."<p>

When Zack had first taken Cloud with him and escaped from Shinra manor, he had not expected to be met with so much resistance. All around him, in groups of eight to ten were hordes of Shinra soldiers. All of them carried machine guns and a few carried rocket launchers.

'All this excitement over little old me. I should feel special.'

From behind the rock where he had hidden a mako-poisoned Cloud, Zack heard, "Zack Fair, come out and surrender. If you do so, no harm will come to you."

The promise was false. Zack was not ignorant enough to fall for such a simple trick. He knew that if he turned himself in, he and Cloud would be taken back to the laboratory they had just escaped from.

So instead of giving the men the satisfaction of capturing him, Zack drew his buster sword from its sheath.

'Sorry, Sensei. I hate to do this to you, but I can't let myself be a scientific experiment.'

* * *

><p>She didn't know why her first instinct was to fly back to Midgar. She knew that if she returned there, the Shinra company would try to capture her again. She chalked it up to instinct, and continued on her way. She was hopeful that Zack and Cloud had been taken there as well.<p>

However, she was met with a more grim reality when she looked down over one of the cliffs near the city. The spiky black hair and overly huge sword were both pleasantly and terribly familiar.

'Zack.'

She sped up her flight when she saw what surrounded him. She understood why Shinra felt he had to send as many soldiers as he had, but it was still an unbelievable sight to witness. With his back to a high cliff, Zack did not stand a chance against the enemy before him.

As Rei looked upon the enemy, she felt no fear. With the amount of power coursing through her body, she felt she could take on Odin himself. She flapped her wings quickly, and nose dived down towards Zack.

* * *

><p>When the black, white and green appeared before him, shock would have been an understatement. Zack had fully intended to walk into his death, but when his Sensei appeared before him, Zack's heart leapt.<p>

"S-Sensei?"

Rei spread her wings out protectively in front of Zack and asked, "Zack, are you okay?"

Zack nodded.

She lowered her voice slightly and said, "Good. Now where's Cloud?"

Zack knew there was no time to waste so he quickly replied, "Behind the rock."

In front of her, Rei could hear the soldiers loading their guns, so she began to build her magic up into her hands. As soon as the men raised their guns, Rei placed a barrier over Zack and Cloud. However, before she had time to place one over herself, the men began firing their machine guns upon her.

The pain was excruciating. The bullets tore through her flesh, and blood flew onto the ground around her. After a few seconds, however, she found that the bullets, though painful, were not weakening her. A light clicked on in her head.

'These bullets aren't infused with Jenova cells.'

Rei grinned maliciously at the soldiers and waited for them to stop their assault. As soon as the last bullet hit her, she giggled slightly.

"You fools."

Rather than try to waste her time pulling out each individual bullet, Rei found that she could use her new found power to push the bullets out. Behind her, she could feel Zack's concern, but she flashed him a quick smile, as best she could with bullet holes through her cheeks, trying to let him know there was nothing to worry about. She put her magic to use and began to push the bullets out of her flesh. Her mangled face, chest, abdomen, arms, and legs began to glow green along with the Jenova pieces. The sheer power flowing through her at the moment was enough to send her head spinning.

The bullets seemed to crawl out of her body, and each one made a 'clink' as it hit the ground around her. The soldiers began to chatter amongst themselves, trying to figure out what to do next.

Once all of the bullets had been successfully removed, Rei proceeded to heal all of the wounds they had made. Zack watched in awe as his teacher showed power he'd never seen from her before. He immediately chalked it up to the new Jenova pieces, but the display was still remarkable, nonetheless.

"I'd suggest the lot of you leave right now," Rei warned, "I'd rather not kill anyone, but if you keep trying to hurt my son I'll have no choice."

She didn't want to use the plural "sons" because she didn't know if the soldiers knew Cloud's location. However, she found it didn't matter what she had said to them because the soldiers were not backing down. Clearly there was something driving them that was far more frightening than her.

She sighed heavily, and she held out her hands towards the soldiers. They all flinched as her hands began to glow red. Her eyes fell on them apologetically, and fire shot from her pores. A few of the soldiers turned their backs in an attempt to run, but it was too late. Large waves of fire shot from Rei's hands and blanketed half of the army in its flames.

Several of the soldiers died instantly while others were not so fortunate. Rei had never been in a situation that called for her to kill so many people, so she felt a small flicker of guilt. However, she could not allow herself to feel too bad. She had given them a warning, and she had to protect her students. She was about to unleash another wave of fire onto the army, when she saw a familiar face in the back of the crowd.

A white lab coat blew in the wind along with long black hair tied in a ponytail. From behind thick glasses, the eyes of Hojo stared back at her. All of the anger she had built up over the years made itself physically known. Both of her arms, from wrist to shoulder engulfed in flames. From his place behind the army, Hojo grinned menacingly.

"I'm going to burn that grin off of your face, Hojo!"

In her rage, Rei had forgotten one of the major rules of battle. Never allow your enemy to distract you. Zack recognized her mistake and tried to warn her, but his warning came too late. Just as she was about to release her fire towards Hojo, she felt something hard and cold press against her chest. Before she had time to see what it was, her chest came under an extreme pressure followed by an excruciating pain she'd never felt before.

"Sensei!" she heard Zack shout from behind her.

The power she had previously felt was gone from her body and she felt herself collapse onto the ground. When she looked up to see what had happened, she saw a soldier standing over her with a smoking shotgun. Hands took her shoulders and pulled her upward. She recognized the hands of her student.

"Hang on, Sensei."

His attempts to help her were appreciated, but futile. The number of shotgun pellets in her chest were too many to count much less remove. The soldiers did exactly what Rei knew they would do. They took advantage of her weakened state.

"Fire!"

The one word destroyed Rei's world completely. The guns, which had previously been aimed at her, unleashed their fury on her student. Unable to protect him, Rei was forced to watch helplessly as the bullets ripped through Zack, and his blood flew in all directions.

"No!"

His blood-stained body slumped backwards and hit the ground roughly.

"Zack!"

Her arms were void of strength, but she still reached them out and drug her limp body towards Zack. When she reached him, guilt shot through her mind. If she had not allowed herself to be distracted by Hojo she could have killed the rest of the soldiers before they had had the opportunity to shoot her.

Tears streamed down her face and landed on the red ground, "Zack."

"S-Sensei. Can you do...something for me?"

She could hardly think of words to say to him, so she simply nodded.

"Take...care of Cloud. You know...as well as I...do that he...still has a lot...to learn."

Zack's dying words. How could she wrap her head around that? One of her two remaining children was giving her his dying words.

"Zack. Forgive me."

She knew she had no right to ask for forgiveness. In a few minutes her son would stop breathing and return to the planet. Never again would he laugh, snore, joke, or yell impulsively. He would not be there for her to wake up in the morning. She wouldn't be able to train with him anymore. Zack was going to die and she had been to one to cause it.

"Don't say...that Sensei. This is...not your fault."

Her inability to have children had never really bothered her before. However, with one of her only two children left dying in her arms she cursed her infertility.

"I love you, Zack."

Footsteps coming from behind her left a disgusting taste in her mouth.

"Touching. Now seize her you fools," barked Hojo.

When the hands of the men began to pull her away from Zack, her heart sunk even further than it had.

"No," she protested weakly, "Zack."

Hojo smirked and sneered, "You should have stayed where you were girl, then you would not have had to witness the death of your student."

Before his face was out of her sights, Zack flashed her a bloody smile, saying his final goodbyes to his Sensei. From behind the rock, Rei saw a small flash of yellow. Praying that Hojo had not seen it too, she turned her face away.

'Cloud. Be safe. I'll find you one day. I promise.'

"Shoot her again. We don't need her getting the idea to struggle."

She made no attempt to fight back as one of the soldiers put another shotgun shell into her back.


	14. Chapter 14

*Okay this chapter was very awkward for me to write and it will probably come across in my writing. I apologize for how weird and oddly written this chapter is, but I promise this will be the only awkward chapter. It's kinda like a transition chapter and I've never been very good at those so forgive me and the next chapter will be up soon.*

Chapter 14

The second she was aware that she was alive, her chest seemed to cave in. The realization of what had occurred was more than she could bear. Angeal, Genesis, Sephiroth, Zack. They were all gone. She knew things could not possibly get any worse, so as she opened her eyes she prepared herself for Hojo's evil grin. However, when she was met with a darkened room, she was understandably surprised. The walls around her were brown with stones and dirt, and the ceiling was made entirely of concrete.

Beneath her, instead of feeling a cold, hard laboratory table she felt cushions. The slight constriction over the top of her body told her that she was covered in a blanket as well.

'Hojo must think this is a pretty funny joke.'

She sat up in the bed and began to look around the room for the scientist's amused face, but she saw no one. She could tell that she was in fact in a laboratory, but it did not look like anyone had used in it a very long time. On a desk in the middle of the strange room were papers upon papers of scientific formulas and experimental data. Lab tanks were positioned in the four corners of the room.

Had the damnable scientist been in the room, she would not have given him the pleasure of seeing her cry, but since she found no one in the room, Rei allowed herself to break down. She rolled over in the bed and buried her face in the pillow beneath her. She screamed aloud into it, and the cloth soaked up the moisture from her face. The image of the bullets tearing through Zack replayed itself through her head again and again.

'Zack.'

After she'd lost Angeal, Genesis, and Sephiroth, she had decided she would not let anything happen to her remaining two children. Her one thought was making sure that the two of them stayed safe. She'd failed. She had let her anger get the better of her. She'd allowed Hojo to distract her from her duties, something she'd always warned her students against.

'_S-Sensei. Can you do...something for me?_'

The memory rang through her head like a sudden slap to the face, and it snapped her out of her self pity. Zack's final request. In her grief she had almost forgotten it. Like Zack had told her after Genesis' disappearance, she had more children than just one. Granted she only had one left at that point, but even with only one child that meant she still had a purpose.

'Zack. I let you down once. I won't do it again. I promise.'

When she looked down at herself, not surprisingly the white lab coat she'd been wearing was gone. Now the question was posed: what was she going to wear? She let her feet dangle off of the side of the bed and touch the floor. The soles of her feet were assaulted by the cold linoleum. She gave the room one more sweep with her eyes, hoping to find something she could use to clothe herself with. In the far corner of the room, right next to one of the four lab tanks was a door. From the small open spaces around the wooden door, Rei could see a light. It was quite a contrast from the very dimly lit room she was in.

She put weight on her feet, checking to see if her seemingly long sleep had caused any weakness in her muscles. She was a little wobbly when she stood, but she was able to steady herself easily. The new Jenova pieces had caused her much grief, but there were times they were useful. She headed towards the door, hoping there was something behind it she could use.

When she turned the doorknob and opened the mysterious door, she was met with a glorious sight. It was a spotless, shiny, white bathroom. There was a small toilet, a sink with a mirror cabinet and a large bathtub with a silver shower head. She'd never been so happy to see a bath tub in her life. However, when she looked around the bathroom, it looked very suspicious. On the sink was a grey and white toothbrush, toothpaste, hand soap, and perfume. On the rim of the bathtub were three completely full bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. Hanging from a towel rack next to the tub was a white towel and luffa.

The bathroom itself was so out of place in its environment that she figured questioning the logic of the situation would be ridiculous. She turned her head to the left and found a brown, wooden cabinet. When she opened it, she found a grey knapsack along with three grey jump suits and a pair of grey boots. When she looked at the size of the clothes and shoes, a chill ran down her spine.

'Okay this is weird.'

Putting shampoo and other small essentials into the room was one thing, but this person actually knew her clothing size. She was about to leave the bathroom to search for someone possibly hiding in the room when she glimpsed a slip of paper sticking out of one of the pockets of the knapsack. She reached her hand up to the paper and slid it out of the pocket. It was folded three times into a small rectangle. When she unfolded the paper, she read:

'_I've known about the pain my father caused you since the beginning. I hope to make amends by helping you as much as I can. Hopefully these clothes and other essentials will be an acceptable start._

_-RS'_

'My father? RS? Who is this person?'

Clearly the person meant well, so Rei wasn't going to insult him or her by ignoring the gifts. She wished she knew who he or she was so she could offer thanks, but there was no time for her to be searching for ghosts. Cloud was the only thing on her mind. She rushed for the shower and swiftly turned on the water.

* * *

><p>"Vincent! Vincent are you here?"<p>

For the umpteenth time, Cloud was visiting his hermit friend to try to convince him to leave the shabby old mansion he was living in. Since Cloud and his friends had defeated Sephiroth, Vincent had retreated into the background, keeping to himself as much as possible. He'd decided to keep to himself by living in the one place he knew his friends didn't like to visit, Shinra Manor. After living in the place for thirty years, Vincent had decided that it sickeningly felt the most like home. For some reason, the electricity and water in the building had been restored only weeks after he had started living there, so it had not been inconvenient for him.

Though Vincent wasn't living without electricity and water, Cloud still worried about him. Cloud knew from experience that living alone with little human contact was not good for a person's mind, especially a mind like Vincent's.

"What is it, Cloud?"

From the top of the stairs in the lobby, Vincent looked down onto his blonde haired friend, waiting for the weekly lecture Cloud always gave him lately.

"I know I've asked a million times already, but you really need to leave this place Vincent. Will you please come with me?"

"You ask me the same question every week and I always give you the same answer."

"I know, but living up here in the mansion by yourself isn't good for you. You don't have to be alone all of the time. Contrary to what you make think, you do have friends."

Vincent leapt down from his place on the stairs, and landed in front of Cloud, "I'm not the kind of friend you want to have around. I'm the kind of person people try to avoid. I always will be."

Cloud crossed his arms and said, "That sounds like bad excuse to me."

* * *

><p>At the same time Cloud was arriving at Shinra Manor, Rei had finished her shower, dressed herself, and packed all of her gifts into the knapsack along with the note. She did intend to find the writer of the note one day, so she decided she'd better keep it. She walked out of the bathroom and found a door on the other side of the room. She headed towards the door and opened it. She was not expecting to find a very tall stairway.<p>

As she looked to the top of the stairs, she could barely make out a door.

'Dear Odin. How far underground am I?'

She didn't have time to judge the distance, so she decided to test if her wings worked. She was delighted when her wings sprouted from her back with no trouble. Though the corridor was small, she was able to spread her wings and fly to the door at the top of the stairs. She grasped the doorknob and opened the door swiftly. The sudden sunlight left her in a temporary state of blindness. As her eyes slowly adjusted, she was met with a shocking picture. All around her were piles upon piles of rubble and remnants of buildings. She looked around for some kind of landmark that might tell her where she was, but she could find nothing familiar.

Deciding hanging around was useless, she took to the skies and flew out towards the ocean. Looking for Cloud was her top priority, but she had always wanted to fly over the ocean.

'Who knows? Cloud might actually be on the other continent.'

She flew down close to the surface of the water and reached her hand out towards it.

'No,' she thought, 'That's too cliche. I'm not gonna do that.'

She ascended back into the air and within minutes, the other continent was in sight. The sharp mountains of Nibelheim were the first things her eyes focused on. However, when she tried to see the tips of the mountains, she found her eyes were blurred. Her head began to spin and she felt her strength weaning.

'Crap.'

Clearly she was not ready to make such a long distance trip, and as she flew over Nibelheim, she lost her strength completely and plummeted towards the earth.

* * *

><p>Below, and unsuspecting Vincent said, "It's not an excuse, Cloud. I-"<p>

A crash from behind him stopped Vincent in his tracks. He turned towards the sound and almost gasped. A flash of white, black, grey and green passed before his eyes and hit the ground roughly. Before he had time to react, Cloud had already run past him.

Cloud looked down at the ground and towards the familiar sight, "S-Sensei?"

Never had he been happier to see the white and black wings of his Sensei. He took hold of her shoulders tightly, and lifted her off of the ground.

"Sensei! Sensei! Can you hear me?"

She stirred, but she did not open her eyes. His voice had reached her, but it had not broken through her wooziness.

"Sensei! Sensei!"

'Cloud?'

"Sensei!"

'It is him. It's Cloud.'

Rei fought back the urge to sleep, and pried her eyes open. The flash of yellow was a welcomed sight.

She looked into his turquoise eyes and exclaimed, "Cloud!"

Overwhelmed with the joy of seeing her student, Rei threw her arms around his neck. The sudden embrace was unexpected but, nonetheless, Cloud happily returned it.

From behind the two, Vincent shifted uncomfortably in his golden shoes. He'd recognized her as soon as he'd seen her. How could he not have? There wasn't a day that went by when he hadn't thought about the girl in the lab tank. He was not aware, however, that Cloud had known her. He'd talked about his Sensei many times. He'd even called her by her name. The name wasn't terribly common, but he'd had no reason to believe that the lab tank girl 'Rei' and Cloud's Sensei 'Rei' were the same person.

"Where have you been, Sensei?"

Rei looked up from the crook in Cloud's neck and replied, "What do you mean? How long have I been gone? The last time I saw you was right when Zack-"

She couldn't bring herself to say the word 'died'. She'd accepted the death of her student, but she was not ready to say it aloud.

"That was four years ago, Sensei."

Four years. First she'd had to stay locked up under Hojo's supervision for four years. Then she'd slept for another four. Eight years of her life had been stolen by Hojo and Shinra.

"Dear Odin. That makes me 54 years old."

Cloud chuckled at his Sensei's odd realization an said reassuringly, "Not quite. Your birthday hasn't come this year yet. You're still 53."

Rei rolled her eyes and said, "That makes me feel _so_ much better."

When Rei had playfully rolled her eyes, she had caught a quick glimpse of her surroundings. The walls, the pictures, the stairs, the ceiling, the sickening familiarity. The night of the Nibelheim destruction ran through her mind like children playing tag. A never ending cycle of 'tag you're it' with her memories. Each tag felt more powerful than the last.

Her heart raced and her entire body tensed up, "Sh-Shinra Manor."

Cloud's instincts served him well, and he tightened his grip on her, "I'm sorry, Sensei. Come on. Let's get you out of here."

He lifted her up from the ground, and she stood next to him, clinging to his arm tightly.

Cloud turned, lead Rei past his friend and said, "Just think about what I said, Vincent."

A light clicked on in Rei's head. She had noticed the man before, but she had been so overwhelmed by seeing Cloud she had not paid him any mind. But now that she knew his name, he had her full attention. She released her grip on Cloud's arm and turned towards the man Cloud had been speaking to. As soon as his face entered her vision, Rei recognized him.

Not knowing what to say, Vincent simply returned her gaze. If there was one thing he was good at it was keeping silent. Vincent couldn't have known the feeling rushing through Rei's chest at that moment. Nor would he have believed it even if he had known.

"Sensei? You know him?"

Cloud's voice did not break the hold her eyes had over Vincent, but she still quietly replied, "Yes."

She searched Vincent's eyes for recognition, and she found it. Her heart soared as she realized that he remembered her too.

"His name was the first word...I ever said."

Cloud knew she was speaking to him, but no one on the outside of the conversation could have known. Not with the locked gazes of the two people before him.

A flock of birds flew over the mansion, soaring over the hole Rei had left in the ceiling. The shadows passing over the three people ended the awkward silence, and Rei was the first to end the staring contest. She turned towards Cloud and smiled.

"Let's get out of here, Cloud. This is the last place I want to be."

Cloud, satisfied that the strange moment was over, nodded, "Okay Sensei. Let's go."

He held out his hand, and Rei swiftly took it.

Cloud looked back one last time and asked, "Are you sure you won't come with us, Vincent?"

Vincent crossed his arms and replied, "Why is it you wish me to go with you so badly? I can't be that fun to have around."

Cloud sighed and said, "That's not the point and you know it."

Vincent did not answer, and he kept his feet firmly where they were. It was clear to Cloud that he was getting nowhere.

Rei looked back and forth between the two men before saying to Vincent, "You can't be happy living here. This place is full of awful memories...for both of us. Just looking at these walls makes me sick. You can't honestly tell me that you don't get the same feeling."

She'd never spoken more than one word to him, but she's seen right through him. Vincent's eyes hit the floor. He'd never been happy living in the mansion. It was the place he'd been killed, the place he'd been made a monster, and his prison for thirty years. It was where Lucrecia had first decided to inject her newly-formed fetus with Jenova cells. It was the place Hojo had shown his true colors and betrayed Lucrecia's trust. It was the place where he had lost everything.

"Of course it's you're choice," Rei continued, "But you really shouldn't live in a place that brings back so many horrible memories. It's not healthy."

Cloud had asked him countless times to leave the mansion and join him in Midgar. He'd always refused him no matter what he had said. Though he would deny his reasons to himself later, Vincent allowed Rei's words to convince him, even if only a bit, that he didn't belong in such an empty, hate-filled place. However, she had not convinced him to leave.

Cloud took the opportunity to add in, "See, Vincent? Even Sensei says that you shouldn't be living here."

Rei squeezed Cloud's hand and said, "Don't do that, Cloud. If he wants to stay here he's gonna stay here. But the question is, Vincent, do you really want to stay here? Or are you staying here because of some sense of self-loathing and guilt? Believe me, locking yourself up doesn't make the nasty feelings go away. It only makes them worse."

Once again, in all of ten seconds, Rei had looked into his eyes and read him perfectly. Her perception was astounding.

He returned her gaze and replied, "How are you doing that?"

Rei wisely asked, "Doing what? Reading you? It's easy. I used to have the same look in my eyes that you have right now. I probably still have it. That look of hatred not for others but for yourself. It's an easy look to find if you know what to look for."

Cloud had known his Sensei was smart, but he didn't know she was able to read the emotions of people so well. He'd never seen her do it before. Which begged the question. If she could read emotions so easily, why was she so surprised when Genesis ran away? Why was she so surprised when Sephiroth turned on her?

As he thought about the odd change in his teacher, he suddenly remembered the conversation he'd overheard between Rei and Zack on their way to Modeoheim, and he thought to himself, '_Maybe it's just Vincent. Maybe she's only able to read him. She did tell Zack she was in love with him. Maybe she still is._'

From the look in her eyes when she spoke to Vincent, it would not have been a far fetched idea.

Vincent continued to stare back at her in wonder. He could tell she had some level of caring for him, but he was unable to see the full extent of her feelings. This ignorance made the conversation awkward for him. He was not used to a person being able to see through him so clearly. He was used to everyone seeing him as an enigma of sorts.

"Why are you so worried about me?" Vincent asked, "You don't even know me."

He didn't know how his words stung her. She didn't let the slight pain show.

She didn't think any answer she could give would be sufficient, so she simply smiled and turned towards Cloud, "Let's go, Cloud. We shouldn't push him anymore."

Though it pained her to walk away from him, Rei followed her student out of the mansion.

As he watched her leave, Vincent could not get her words out of his head. She'd been worried about him, but she had not been overbearing. She'd been sincere, but not overly so. When Cloud and Tifa had asked him to leave the mansion, it had felt like nagging. When Rei had asked him to leave, it felt more like a friendly suggestion. Telling Cloud not to push him anymore was also a breath of fresh air.

When he'd met the woman all of those years ago he had not expected to ever see her again much less find such a kindred soul in her. Now she had bewitched him, and he was compelled to follow her if only to find out more about her. He turned towards the stairs and leapt towards the room at the top of them. In the room was a single bed, a night stand, and a connected bathroom. He took a brown bag he'd had sitting on the floor and packed the very few necessities he had. The bag weighed no more than 5 pounds.

The impulsiveness of his actions were totally out of character for him, and he knew it. Still the compulsion to learn more about the girl from the lab tank was too great for him to pay it much mind. He headed to the door and followed behind his friend and his new found fascination.

When Rei and Cloud heard the footsteps coming from behind them, they were both shocked. Rei was shocked that her words had had an impact, and Cloud was shocked that Vincent had listened. When he approached them with his brown bag, Rei smiled gingerly at him.

"Glad you decided to join us, Vincent," she said softly.

Every time she said his name her heart leapt, but it also sank. It was a strange feeling she'd not been accustomed to.

He walked up beside her, and his eyes hit the ground. When he'd chosen to leave the mansion it had been on a whim. Now he realized he had not thought things through. He knew he wanted to know more about her, but he also knew that he was not a people person.

Rei sensed his discomfort and whispered, "Don't worry. I won't let anyone make a big deal about you coming with us."

Her words, though reassuring, did not bring him that much comfort.

*Again. Sorry for the awkwardness of this chapter. The next one will be much better I promise. Every writer has that point in a story where there is an awkward scene or two. Hopefully you all won't hold this one awkward chapter against me. :)*


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

When Cloud lead Rei and Vincent through the front doors of Seventh Heaven, all of his friends were there waiting for him. They had all been planning to play a prank on Vincent if he'd decided to return with Cloud, but as soon as they saw Rei all thoughts of pranking Vincent left their minds.

Obviously, Tifa was the first to recognize her. Yuffie was the second. Everyone else only recognized her from the descriptions Cloud had given them. Rei scanned the room and found the familiar faces of Tifa and Yuffie immediately.

As Tifa and Yuffie approached her, Rei fell into a silence. While indirectly, she'd caused harm to the both of them, so she stood silent waiting for them to have their stab at her.

Tifa was the first to speak, "Don't be so nervous. We aren't going to bite your head off."

Rei's eyes met Tifa's and she replied, "Really? You both have the right to. I wouldn't blame you at all. I'll even let you kick my ass if you want."

Tifa looked behind her at Yuffie and smiled.

Yuffie smiled back and said, "Naw. Cloud has told us everything about you. We know that nothing that happened was your fault. I also know that you're not a bad person. If you were a bad person you could have easily killed me that day in Wutai."

Tifa continued, "Yuffie is right. You're Cloud's teacher, and any friend of Cloud's is a friend of ours despite your background with Shinra. Welcome to the Seventh Heaven."

With the awkward moment over with, Cloud lead Rei around the room and introduced her to the remainder of his friends. She took an immediate liking to Nanaki.

"I don't mean to sound rude in any way. It's just I was never allowed to have animals around me when I worked at Shinra. But I've always wanted to live with an animal or two."

Nanaki took no offense to her statement and grinned, "I understand. Well I'm not going anywhere."

* * *

><p>Once all of the introductions were through, Cloud took Rei by the hand, "Come on, Sensei. I'll show you your room."<p>

Rei looked back at him and said, "M-My room?"

"Of course. Did you think we were going to make you sleep outside?"

Rei grinned, but with embarrassment more than humor, "No but..."

Cloud squeezed her hand, "Don't even try the "I don't want to be a burden" card. If you do _I_ will have to give _you_ a lecture."

Rei giggled and replied, "Okay."

Cloud lead her up the stairs of the bar, and to the back of a hallway to the left. He opened the door to the last room on the right, and she followed him in. It wasn't a small room, but it wasn't a big one either. Connected to the room was a small bathroom. It had a shower, a sink, and a toilet but not much else. Rei wasn't complaining, however, and moved over to the bed in the corner of the room. She dropped her knap sack on it and opened it up. The note fell out onto the bed.

Cloud noticed the note and picked it up, "What is this, Sensei?"

Rei looked at what he was holding and said, "It's a note I found with all of this stuff. I don't know who left it, but I'd sure like to thank them one day."

Cloud unfolded the note and read it over. As soon as his eyes fell on the 'RS' he knew immediately who it was.

"Rufus Shinra."

Rei eyed him intently, "Rufus? President Shinra's legitimate son?"

Cloud nodded, "I guess he's on some kind of road to redemption. He's going to have to travel a long way."

Rei took the note back from Cloud and placed it in the knap sack where it had been, "I don't know what he's done in the past, but I am still grateful for his help. I don't know where I would have been if he hadn't left me these things."

She reached into the bag and pulled out the other jumpsuits he had left her, "It's still kind of creepy that he knew my clothing size, though."

Cloud chuckled and walked towards the door, "Get some sleep, Sensei. I'll see you in the morning."

Rei pulled back the blankets on the bed and answered, "I'll lay down, but I'm not going to guarantee I'll sleep. I've been sleeping for four years now."

Cloud stepped outside of the room and said, "Good night, Sensei."

Rei smiled at him, "Good night."

As Cloud closed the door behind him, dread coursed through his body. He knew in the morning he was going to have to tell Sensei of all that had occurred while she was asleep. That included the resurrection of Sephiroth and the death of Aerith. Cloud knew that she had never met Aerith, but knowing that someone so close to Zack had been killed by Sephiroth would not be easy for her.

He was about to walk back to his friends when Vincent came walking towards him.

Cloud pointed to the door opposite Rei's and said, "That's your room, Vincent. Sorry, but there are no coffins in there."

Vincent chuckled slightly, "I think thirty years was ample time to make me hate coffins."

"You really should burn that thing, Vincent. It would probably make you feel better."

"Maybe."

Cloud turned and began to walk past his friend, "I know you don't really sleep, but try to get some rest."

"Sure."

As Cloud walked away, Vincent heard footsteps from the room next to him. Rei had been listening.

'Curious isn't she?'

He turned his back to her door and walked into his own room, closing the door firmly behind him.

* * *

><p>Had his room not been so close to hers he probably would not have been able to hear the crying. Vincent had only been in the room for an hour when he suddenly heard a muffled shriek come from the direction of Rei's room. At first he though she might have stubbed her toe or something, so he left her alone. Then he heard the whimpering and the noise coming from the springs on her bed. Still he did not wish to intrude. However, when he clearly heard her say the word 'no' multiple times, he decided he'd best check on her.<p>

He quickly left his room and entered hers. When he looked upon her she looked utterly pitiful. Her white hair was stuck to her face by sweat and she seemed to be fighting off a ghost. Her body convulsed under the blanket, and she continued to mutter, "No. No. No."

Unsure of what else to do, he approached the bed and took hold of her shoulders.

He gently shook her and said, "Rei. Rei wake up."

His voice did not break through the nightmare, and his grip seemed to only frighten her more. She began to struggle violently against him. The last time he'd had tried to restrain her, it had been with the help of Lucrecia, but this time he was alone. He had to wake her without making the nightmare worse, but he had no idea how.

"Rei. Wake up. It's not real. Wake up!"

She continued to fight his grip. Her whimpering amplified, and he was afraid she might wake up the whole house, including the children.

No longer holding his strength back, he pushed her down onto the bed and said quietly but sternly, "Rei! Wake up! Now!"

The pressure of his hands and the power in his voice pulled Rei out of the nightmare. She opened her eyes and met his immediately. He released her shoulders and stepped back from her. Heavy breaths were escaping from her lungs.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

Once she had caught her breath, she pushed herself up into a sitting position and replied, "Yeah. I'm sorry if I woke you."

Vincent shook his head, "I wasn't sleeping. I don't sleep much anymore."

Rei grinned slightly, "From what I heard you won't need to sleep for the next thirty some years."

"Eavesdropper."

"Sorry."

A silence fell over the room. But it wasn't an awkward silence. It was more of an understanding and hopeful silence. Both of them wished to say something to the other, but each was afraid of what the other would say in turn.

Rei was the first to break the silence by saying, "I'm surprised you're not asking me what the nightmare was about."

"It's not my place to ask you what your nightmares are about. If it's a nightmare then it's clearly not something you'd want to relive."

"But you are curious. I can see it in your eyes."

"Yeah. And I can see that you've been through some kind of unimaginable pain. Only those with a horrid past have nightmares that realistic."

He knew what she was thinking just as well as she knew what he was thinking. Their minds seemed to meld the longer they talked to each other.

"If you really want to hear my sob story I will tell you, but I don't have the desire to ruin your night. I'd say that's probably the last thing you need."

He wanted to tell her that it was just what he needed. Of all of his friends, he was the one with the most baggage. That's the reason he had kept himself away from them. He didn't want to burden them with his problems. Now there was someone who was just as loaded with baggage as he was. Now she was offering to talk to him about herself.

"I won't stop you. I'll listen if you wish."

"I've never really talked about it to anyone. Cloud's the only one who knows everything."

She peeled her hair away from her sweat-covered face and shifted in the bed.

"It started the day they brought Sephiroth to me."

* * *

><p>True to his word, Vincent listened. She told him everything from beginning to end and he had only interrupted once. When she reached the attack in Shinra manor he asked her if she re-lived that horrid event in her nightmare. She answered yes.<p>

Just hearing her speak about the horrible series of events made Vincent ill, so he couldn't imagine what she had went through experiencing it all.

After she'd finished her tale, Vincent had only one question, "How do you function?"

Rei, not quite understanding the question, asked, "What do you mean?"

He crossed his arms over his chest, and tried to think of a way to ask the question without sounding cliche and overbearing.

"How do you get through the day with all of that pain hanging over your head?"

Rei thought he might ask her that question, so she had already prepared an answer, "As long as there are people for me to protect I will always have a reason to live."

The answer was sufficient for Vincent, but it still amazed him that she was not in a constant state of depression. When she saw Cloud again she had smiled. When she was being introduced to Cloud's friends she was laughing. She was still able to smile and be happy even with the horrible events of her past.

Rei, more to herself, said, "I haven't exactly been the greatest protector so far. I've let four of my children die. But I won't let it happen again. I won't lose Cloud too. I would sooner die a thousand deaths."

He could sense the seriousness in her voice. Unlike himself, she was planning on finding redemption. He had simply given up on forgiveness and making amends. He did not think he deserved to free himself from his guilt. That's why he refused to burn his coffin. He wanted it there as a reminder that he was unworthy of the forgiveness of others.

But Rei, who carried far more guilt than he ever would, was willing to forgive herself, if only a little, and search for the light beyond the darkness. He could tell that she wanted to break down. That she wanted to feel sorry for herself. Any normal human would. But she didn't let herself behave that way.

He did not wish to impose on her anymore, so he turned towards the door.

Behind him, he heard her jokingly say, "I told you it would ruin your night."

'_On the contrary, Rei. You've improved my night more than you can ever know_.'

"Try to get some sleep now," was all he could think to say.

Again, jokingly, she replied, "Okay but you'd better come wake me up if I have another nightmare."

He knew she was joking but he still thought, '_I will_.'

He walked out of the room and closed the door gently. He was about to walk back across the hallway to his room when he glimpsed yellow down the hallway.

"Cloud?"

Cloud motioned for Vincent to follow him, trying to make as little noise as possible. He assumed that Cloud had overheard the conversation between himself and Rei, so he followed him without question. Cloud lead Vincent down stairs and into the bar. Vincent sat at one of the bar stools, and Cloud walked behind the counter.

"You look like you could use a drink," Cloud said.

Vincent wasn't about to argue, and Cloud poured him a glass of scotch. Vincent had never been a big drinker, but at that moment he could have emptied every bottle in the bar. Cloud placed the bottle and the glass in front of Vincent.

"So you talked to her?"

"Yeah."

Cloud pulled a stool up to the bar and sat down opposite Vincent, "I heard her from my room. I was on my way to wake her up, but you beat me to it."

Vincent did not answer and took a drink out of the glass.

"Do you regret it? Talking to her I mean."

Vincent shrugged his shoulders very slightly, "Yes and no."

"Yes and no?"

He took another drink and replied, "It was a horrible story to listen to. Especially what happened in the basement of Shinra Manor."

Cloud shivered a bit in his chair, "Me and Zack walked in on that. We knew that Sephiroth would probably do something rash, but what we saw was the last thing we were expecting. It made us both sick."

Once again, Vincent didn't answer.

"I never told Sensei this, but I think it was the hardest on Zack. Zack had a family, but they were never exactly close. He saw Sensei as a mother figure more than any of us."

No answer again.

"Not in the mood for talking, Vincent?"

Vincent finished the remainder of the scotch in the glass and poured himself another, "It's not that. I just don't know what to say."

Cloud looked upon his friend, and saw right through him, "Just say what you're thinking. I can see that you want to."

The alcohol must have gone to his head because Vincent replied, "I don't want to see her hurt anymore. Not if we can prevent it."

Vincent was expecting Cloud to make a big deal of what he had said, but he didn't.

Instead, Cloud replied, "I agree. I think it's time someone protected her."

Vincent took another drink, "If she'll even let us protect her. I get the feeling she's pretty independent."

Cloud chuckled and tried to change the subject by saying, "Her birthday is in two weeks."

Vincent appreciated Cloud's attempt to lighten the mood and replied, "What are you going to do for it?"

Cloud crossed his arms over his chest and said, "She'll never agree to us throwing a party for her, so we'll have to make sure she doesn't know about it. I haven't told the others yet, but I'm sure they will all want to get her something. Which is another reason we'll have to keep it a secret. She definitely won't want anyone giving her presents."

Vincent raised the glass one more time and said, "Presents."

He knew her favorite color was grey, so anything he could get her in that color would make her happy. But he didn't want to give her a generic present. He wanted to be different.

"You said she used to live in the Shinra Building, right?"

"Yeah on the fifth floor. That entire floor pretty much belonged to her. Why?"

Vincent finished off his second glass and did not pour a third. He placed the glass on the bar and stood from the chair.

"Good night, Cloud."

Vincent never asked a question without a reason, so Cloud knew he had something on his mind. Still he did not question him and replied, "Night."

He watched his friend walk up the stairs and towards his own bedroom.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

When Rei woke up the next morning and found Vincent's bedroom door open, she assumed he had not gone back to bed the night before. Everyone else in the bar were still sleeping, so she walked downstairs to the bar expecting to see Vincent there. However, she was met with a surprise when he was not there. He was not anywhere.

'Guess he went out.'

She looked over towards the bar and found the scotch bottle and empty glass Vincent had left there the night before.

'I shouldn't have told him all of that. I didn't want to drive him to drink.'

She was grateful to him for leaving the scotch out, though. She hadn't had a drink in years, and having one at the moment sounded good. Deciding dirtying another cup would have been pointless, Rei filled the glass half way with the scotch before sitting down at the bar.

Upstairs she could hear bustling coming from one of the rooms. She had thought she was the only one awake, but when Tifa came running downstairs she found she'd been wrong.

Tifa flashed her a smile and walked to the bar. Rather than sit down, she moved behind the counter and began to organize the cups and bottles.

"You open this early?"

Tifa took a quick look at the clock and read the 6:00 am on it, "No. We don't open until 8, but I like to get things ready before then. Getting everything set up takes longer than you would think."

Rei finished off the rest of the scotch in the cup and replied, "Would you like some help? I don't really have anything else to do, so I should try to make myself useful."

Tifa wasn't about to turn down help and said, "You can help if you want. I need the tables wiped down and the chairs arranged properly."

Tifa reached down under the counter and pulled out a rag and some cleaning spray. She put them on the counter for Rei.

"No problem."

Rei took the cleaning items and moved over to the first table.

"Thanks, Rei."

Rei did not reply, and started wiping down the table.

* * *

><p>It had been a shorter trip than he'd thought it was going to be. Vincent had waited for Cloud to go back to his room before he left out of his bedroom window and headed for the remains of the Shinra Building. The building still stood despite the interior damage throughout, so he was hopeful that what he was looking for would still be there.<p>

He entered the building and went up to the fifth floor. There were a lot of rooms to search, so he started with the ones already open. He was lucky because after searching the first two rooms he found the one that looked like it had belonged to Rei. In the other two bedrooms the blankets and pillows on the beds had been white. The ones in that room were gray.

He started by looking through the drawers in the room. They were empty save for a few scraps of cloth. The bed had nothing hidden under the blankets or inside of the pillow case. The nightstand next to the bed held nothing but dust.

He was about to give up when he felt one of the pieces of linoleum under his left foot shift. He looked around the floor in the room and did not see any other pieces of linoleum out of place.

Rather than ignore the linoleum he knelt down and took hold of the loose piece. He lifted it up and saw a piece of paper sitting on top of what looked like a red book and a picture frame. He picked up the paper and when he turned it over he read:

'_When I heard the news of your 'death' I took these two things and hid them. I hope you find them, Rei. Take care._

-_Kunsel'_

Vincent had no idea who Kunsel was, but he was grateful for the man's quick thinking. He placed the note aside and reached into the hole in the floor. He took hold of the red book and lifted it up. Pressed into the cover was the word "Loveless". The book made him instantly think back to the conversation he'd had with Rei the night before. He remembered her telling him that Genesis had bought her the book as a birthday present.

'Now it will be returned to her as a birthday present.'

The real prize, Vincent found, was underneath the book. He took hold of the picture frame and turned it over. The picture inside of the frame almost made him gasp. It was the picture Angeal had given her the same time Genesis gave her "Loveless". There Rei stood with her three students. All of them, including Sephiroth and Genesis were smiling.

As he looked upon Rei in the picture he almost felt tears form in his eyes, "She looked so happy."

He knew that the two pieces of her past he'd found in the building would mean more to her than anything else he could have possibly bought at a store. Satisfied with his find, he left the Shinra Building and returned to the Seventh Heaven.

He climbed back in through his window, hoping to keep his departure a secret. However, when yellow appeared in the corner of his eye he knew he'd been caught.

"Vincent? You know there's a front door."

Vincent half chuckled at the attempted joke and moved over to his bed. He placed the book and the picture on the bed.

"Close the door, Cloud. I don't want Rei to see this just yet."

Cloud's curiosity was piqued, so he immediately entered the room and closed the door. He approached Vincent and looked down at what he had laid in the bed.

The picture was the first thing to catch his eye. The smiling face of his Sensei and three of her students looked back at him and Cloud felt the same urge to tear up as Vincent had. He lifted the picture up and when he did, he noticed a slight bend in the cardboard holding the picture in the frame.

"Why is this bent?"

Vincent moved behind Cloud and looked over his shoulder, "It was hurriedly hidden. Maybe the man who hid it bent it in his haste."

Cloud shook his head, "This bend is deliberate. Someone opened the back of the picture on purpose."

Taking great care not to break the frame or damage the picture, Cloud pulled the cardboard away from the back of the picture. When he did, he noticed another slightly smaller picture hidden behind the first one.

"Another picture?" Vincent questioned.

Cloud was as curious as Vincent was, so he immediately turned the picture over. The sight made tears form in both of their eyes. Pictured was Zack. He was sitting down with his back against a stone wall. His eyes were shut tight, so they could only assume he was sleeping. Leaning into his chest, also in a deep sleep, was Aerith. Zack's arm was wrapped tightly and protectively around her. In the lower left hand corner of the picture, the letter 'T' was printed in gold lettering.

Cloud had to turn the picture back over and place the frame back on the bed. The memory of losing Aerith was too much for him to bear at that moment. He took the opportunity to dry his eyes lest he cry in front of his friend.

"I can't believe you found these things."

Vincent subtly dried his eyes as well and replied, "Like I said, they were hidden from Shinra. A man by the name of Kunsel knew that Shinra would destroy everything that belonged to Rei, so he hid the two belongings of hers that he knew were the most important to her."

Cloud did not offer a reply to Vincent's statement, and instead said, "We're going to have to celebrate her birthday early this year. I won't keep these things from her."

"I agree. Here," he said picking the pictures back up, "You should give her the pictures. It would be more appropriate for her to get them from you."

Cloud shook his head, "I'll give her "Loveless". You found the pictures, Vincent, so you can give them to her."

Vincent shifted uncomfortably, "I...can't."

Cloud crossed his arms and asked, "Why?"

Vincent looked at the picture in his hands and replied, "What if she...cries?"

"Then we will all be there for her. Right?"

Vincent wanted to argue, but he couldn't find a legitimate excuse for making Cloud give her the picture. What was he going to say. "Sorry Cloud, but I can't give her the picture because I'm just not good at those kinds of things." No. That wouldn't work, and he knew it. So he put the picture frame back together and handed "Loveless" to Cloud.

"We'll move the party back to three days from now. I'm sure everyone else won't mind."

Cloud turned towards the door and asked, "So does she know that your birthday is the day after hers?"

Vincent shook his head, "She never asked, so I didn't tell her."

"She'd going to want to return the favor by getting you a gift of equal importance. That's just how Sensei is."

"Then I'm not going to tell her about my birthday. I don't want her buying me things."

Cloud grinned slightly and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

* * *

><p>*Three days later*<p>

An unsuspecting Rei had been met in the Midgar market by Yuffie and Tifa. She'd thought it was strange for Tifa to be out during the mid day because she was usually tending the bar. Yuffie also didn't travel all the way from Wutai for just anything. So she knew the two of them were up to something, but when they lead her back to the Seventh Heaven and she was met with "SURPRISE" and a giant banner with her name on it needless to say she was shocked.

After she got over her shock, she looked at her two female friends and said, "I knew you two were up to something, but this...I was not expecting. It's not even my birthday yet."

Yuffie grinned and held out a box wrapped in pink and green wrapping paper, "Don't bother with technicalities. Open your first present."

Not surprisingly, Yuffie's present was materia, the quadra-magic materia to be exact. Rei's eyes lit up at the sight of the powerful materia. Naturally, she tried to give it back. Such a materia was not easy to come by, but Yuffie refused and made her keep it.

"Thanks, Yuffie."

Each of her new friends brought forth their own unique presents. Barrett brought her a bracelet that had belonged to Marlene's mother. He'd made sure it was okay with Marlene first, of course. Nanaki presented her with a broach made from the feathers of the local birds from his homeland. Cid's present was not wrapped. Instead he flicked an item towards her which she caught in her left hand.

When she opened her hand she saw a silver coin. It was old and worn.

"What is it?" she asked ignorantly.

Cid took a puff off of his cigarette and answered, "It's mah lucky coin. Found it after we launched mah space ship."

Rei looked down at the coin and then back to Cid, "Why would you give away your lucky coin? Don't you need it?"

Cid grinned, "Naw. I reckon you've had a lot worse luck than me. Thought you needed it more."

Rei laughed aloud. He had managed to take her tragic past and make a pretty funny joke out of it. For that, she was grateful.

"Thanks Cid."

Tifa approached next and held out a box. It was not wrapped, so Rei simply lifted up the top. Inside was a full-length gray dress. Rei lifted it up out of the box and found it to be spaghetti-strapped with a slit running up to the thigh. Underneath the boots were a matching pair of gray flat shoes. Tifa had not figured Rei for the type of woman to wear heels, so she thought the flat shoes would be more appropriate. She found she was right when Rei fell into a trance admiring the new clothes she had been given.

"I've never worn a dress before."

Tifa smiled and said, "Well there's always a first time for everything."

Rei smiled back, "Thank you, Tifa. I love it."

Rei noticed a bit of red appear on Tifa's face before she backed away and made room for Cloud. Cloud's present was wrapped in red and black paper. When Rei noticed the shape of the present she expected to open it and find a box with a necklace or another kind of jewelry in it. However, when she took hold of the present she knew she was wrong. At that point her curiosity was through the roof, so she tore away the paper.

As soon as she glimpsed the word "Loveless" Cloud could see the tears welling up in her eyes. He could also see her trying to fight the tears back. She was not the kind of person who enjoyed crying in front of people.

"Infinite in mystery is the gift of the goddess."

Genesis quoted from the play constantly, even before he went on his killing spree, so to have the play in her hands was as close as she could get to having Genesis back. Not wishing to cause a scene, Rei fought back the urge to throw her arms around Cloud's neck.

"Thank you, Cloud. You have no idea..."

Cloud smiled and said, "I know, Sensei."

Finally it was Vincent's turn. He approached her, and managed to hide the feelings of dread and nervousness coursing through his system. He had tried to wrap the present to the best of his abilities. His best turned out to be a crumpled mess of paper and tape. He held the poorly-wrapped present out to her.

She wanted to chuckle a little at the horrible job he'd done wrapping it, but she also didn't wish to be rude. So she ignored the bad wrapping and proceeded to peel the paper away from the present. As soon as her eyes fell onto the picture behind the paper, all thoughts of reason left her mind. She no longer tried to hold back her tears and allowed them to flow freely down her face.

Nostalgia flew through her mind. The days in her life when she had been truly happy ran through her memory, making all of the tragedies seem to dissappear.

"Where did you find...this?" she managed to choke out through her tears.

Vincent uncomfortably replied, "Shinra building. A man named Kunsel hid "Loveless" and that picture under the tiles in the floor hoping that you would find them one day. I happened to be the one to find them instead."

'Good old Kunsel,' Rei thought, 'I wonder what ever became of him.'

The sheer happiness and gratitude Rei felt at that moment made her apathetic about causing a scene. She let her emotions run away with themselves and she wrapped her arms tightly around Vincent, burying her tear-stained face into his welcoming chest. Vincent's normally pale face turned as red as his cape. Everyone in the room stood silent, not wishing to embarrass either of their friends.

At first, Rei was unable to speak, content with allowing herself a moment of pure, unadulterated happiness. However, after she pulled herself together, she released Vincent from her death grip and said, "Th-Thank you. I don't know what else to say besides thank you."

The redness disappeared from Vincent's face and he said, "Open up the back."

She wasn't about to argue with him and carefully opened the back of the frame. She found the second picture and turned it over. More tears fell down her face at the sight of her second youngest student and his lover.

"Zack."

Vincent stood silent. He was still shaken over the sudden embrace he'd just received. He wasn't accustomed to any kind of human contact, so the overload had left him in a spin.

He could see she was prepared to do it again, but she held herself. For that he was most grateful. Instead she took the second picture out of the frame and laid it on the table.

"Do you guys have a spare frame we can put this one in? We can put this one down here in the bar since Aerith is in the picture too."

While Tifa was running off to find a frame, Rei noticed the golden 'T' in the bottom left corner of the picture. She recognized it immediately.

'Tseng. You old softy.'

* * *

><p>After the cake had been cut and all of the partying had died down, Rei took her new gifts and retreated to her room for the night. Right as she went to open her door, she heard footsteps coming from the stairs. The hurried steps could only belong to her favorite ninja.<p>

"Hey! Are you going to bed now?" Yuffie asked.

Rei nodded, "I'm pretty tired, and I cried a lot so sleep would be good."

"Okay well I have to tell you something Cloud told me to tell you."

The statement puzzled Rei and she questioned, "Why doesn't Cloud just tell me?"

Yuffie moved closer to Rei and lowered her voice, "Because it's kind of a secret and Cloud isn't one to reveal secrets. But I am so he sent me instead. Nobody would be surprised to hear that I told a secret."

Rei didn't like it when her own secrets were revealed, so it made her feel a little guilty to be hearing someone else's. But the woman side of her longed to know what Yuffie was talking about so she listened.

"Vincent's birthday is the day after yours."

Rei understood immediately why it had been a secret. Vincent didn't want her to know about his birthday because he was afraid she would try to buy him something to make up for what he had just given her. He had been right and she knew exactly what she was going to do for him.

"Thanks Yuffie. I know exactly what to get him too."

Yuffie moved an inch closer and said, "Do tell."

* * *

><p>*Two days later*<p>

With Rei's birthday party behind him, Vincent thought he was done with surprises. He found he was wrong when he walked through the front doors of the Seventh Heaven and was met with the same kind of surprise Rei had been met with. Thankfully, only Yuffie yelled "SURPRISE" and there was no banner.

There was, however, a stack of wrapped gifts and a cake with his name written on it. Stuck into the cake were two candles in the shape of a six and a three.

His immediate response to the cake was, "Do you have to keep reminding me that I'm in my sixties?"

Vincent looked around the room and he was surprised to see that Rei and Cid were missing. He'd expected Rei to hand him a present in gray wrapping paper and Cid to bring him a bottle of scotch.

Still, he was grateful for less people. It made the party less awkward for him.

* * *

><p>"Are ye sure ye wanna do this, Rei?"<p>

Rei looked up at Cid's airship hovering above her head and answered, "Yeah. I'm sure."

"I can go with ye if ye want."

Rei grinned and said, "Are you really going to leave your 'baby' in the hands of the crew?"

Cid re-thought his offer and replied, "I guess you're right. But be careful in there."

Rei nodded and took off towards the entrance to Shinra Manor.

* * *

><p>Naturally, the party had lead to Barrett and Tifa engaging in an extremely intense drinking game. Barrett had challenged his female friend to countless drinking games and he had always lost. This time was no different. Tifa was on her twenty-fifth shot and she was barely tipsy. Barrett was on his twenty-fourth and he could barely sit up.<p>

Vincent sat at the bar with Cloud and chuckled at Barrett's pitiful state, "He'll never give up no matter how many times he loses."

Cloud looked over at the clock on the wall and said, "Wow it's getting late."

Vincent looked at the clock as well and asked, "Where are Rei and Cid? Isn't it awfully late for the two of them to be out?"

Vincent found his question answered when Rei and Cid walked through the back door of the Seventh Heaven. Rei's jump suit was covered in dirt and her face covered in sweat.

"Sensei? Are you all right?" Cloud asked.

Rei did not reply and her eyes met Vincent's. She motioned for him to follow her. She did not wait for a response and turned her back to him. She headed back towards the door, flashing a quick smile in Cid's direction.

Vincent was not far behind her and when they were both outside alone, Rei turned back towards him, "You gave me something for my birthday that meant the world to me. Now it's time for me to return the favor."

Rei held her hand up and sent fire streaming out of her pores. The fire lit the dark back yard and Vincent was able to see a large blue tarp before him.

"Here it is."

Rei reached her free hand out towards the tarp and pulled it away. Vincent was not able to stifle his gasp. A coffin. His coffin. She had gone to Shinra Manor and recovered his coffin.

"Rei...I..."

"Don't say anything yet. I'm not done."

Using her fire-covered hand, Rei reached out and touched the wooden prison. Within seconds, the dry wood caught and the entire coffin was engulfed in flames. Rei let the fire on her hand die down and she moved back next to Vincent. She stood next to him, and they both watched the prison burn into ashes.

"There," Rei said, "Now it can't ever imprison you again. You're free, Vincent."

Much like Rei had, Vincent let all thoughts of reason leave his mind. Bewitched by what Rei had just done, he forgot all of his reservations and fears of human contact. He took her quickly into his arms and kissed her before she had time to say a word about it.

To say she was surprised would have been true. To say she hadn't enjoyed it would have been a lie. Since she'd seen him again she'd thought of nothing else but kissing him. Now she had finally broken through his barrier. Now _he_ wanted _her_.

As much as it pained him to release her lips, he pulled his face slightly away from hers and looked her straight in the eyes. A familiarity swept through Rei's body. That look. It was the same one he'd given Lucrecia all of those years ago. It was the look she had longed to have aimed at her.

"Vincent. Your eyes."

He tuned out her words and continued to stare into her eyes, mesmerized by the being before him, "Thank you, Rei."


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

From inside of the Seventh Heaven, Vincent and Rei's friends watched as the two leapt up into the air and disappeared into Rei's bedroom window. Cid grinned and took a puff off of his cigarette.

Cloud looked over towards Cid and asked, "She really went into the basement of Shinra Manor and brought out Vincent's coffin?"

Cid shrugged his shoulders, "She said she couldn't remember which coffin was his, so she just guessed. I reckon she guessed right."

Cloud chuckled lightly, "Well even if she guessed wrong, I'd say she got the result she wanted."

Rei was the one to suggest that they get out of the back yard. She said she could feel the eyes of their friends on them, so Vincent followed her to the open window of her bedroom. Vincent closed the window behind them while Rei turned on the light.

Vincent, now nervous after his sudden outburst, reverted back to his normal shy self. Rei noticed his behavior and approached him.

"You don't have to be so nervous, Vincent. I'm not going to make a big deal out of what just happened. If you don't want to talk about it that's okay."

Though he was appreciative of her willingness to avoid discomfort, he knew his actions could not go unmentioned.

He crossed his arms over his chest and said, "To be honest, I expected you to push me away."

Rei wasted no time in asking, "Why would I do that?"

"The better question is, why would you not? You know very little about me. Until recently you'd only met me once, and even then all you said to me was my name. You don't seem the type of woman who would let a stranger kiss you."

Rei was now the one uncomfortable. She knew the only way to explain would be to reveal to Vincent her true feelings about him. But how was she going to explain that she fell in love with him because of a look in his eyes? How does a person explain such a thing?

"Tell me what you're thinking, Rei."

"I will, but you have to promise to answer my question when I'm done."

Rei walked over to the bed and sat down at the foot of it. Her feet shifted uneasily against the floor. Rather than sit next to her, Vincent simply stood in front of her.

"You and Lucrecia thought that after you put me back in the tank I simply went back to sleep. I did, but I woke up on several occasions."

Vincent's eyebrows raised, "You woke up?"

"Yeah. I watched the two of you all the time You would talk about experiments and other things of the like. But I wasn't listening to the conversations. I was focused on you."

"Me? Why?"

Finding the words to describe this feeling without coming out and saying it was impossible, so Rei plainly said, "Your eyes. When you looked at Lucrecia you had a look in your eyes like nothing I'd ever seen. True I hadn't seen much at that point, but that look stuck with me. I started looking forward to when you and Lucrecia would visit the lab because the look returned every time you saw her. I won't lie. I was jealous of her. Every time you would look at her I wanted to _be_ her. I wanted to be the one you were looking at that way."

Vincent was having trouble believing what he was hearing. She had developed such strong feelings because of a simple look?

"Then I woke up to the sound of you yelling one day. It frightened me a lot, but I still wanted to see what was happening. When I opened my eyes I saw you standing across from that bastard Hojo. I had never seen Hojo before so I immediately didn't trust him. Turns out I was right not to trust him. I watched him pull out a pistol and shoot you like it was nothing."

Pain painted her face. The memory was almost as horrible as the death of her children.

"You may think I'm crazy. Hell I think it's pretty crazy sometimes, but...I've never been with a man before. Not willingly anyway. Every time a man has tried to get near me I haven't let him. I knew that none of the men I met would ever be able to look at me the way you looked at Lucrecia, so I pushed all of them away. It may sound selfish, but I've never wanted anyone else. It was always you."

Rei's normally pale skin was now beat red. She'd always dreamed of revealing her feelings to Vincent, but it had all looked so much prettier in her head. Instead of the beautiful fantasy she'd been imagining all of those years, she was met with a slap of reality. She had revealed all of her feelings, and now she was in a position where she had no idea what to do.

Trying to ease her tension, Vincent sat next to her on the bed and took hold of one of her hands, "You're saying you developed all of these feelings just from a look? How is that even possible?"

Rei squeezed his hand, "I've been asking myself the same question for thirty-five years. If I knew the answer I would be much happier right now."

Hearing her uncertainty, Vincent had to ask, "What is the extent of these feelings, Rei? I need to know. Is this just an attraction or is it something else?"

She'd already spilled her guts completely, so she did not hesitate to say, "Are you asking if I'm in love with you?"

Not wishing to speak, Vincent nodded.

"I guess it depends on what you see as love. Zack asked me years ago if I was in love with you, and I didn't know how to answer him. But then he said to me, "You haven't known me very long, but you still love me right?" Of course I said yes.

"I just know that I would do anything, including give my life, to make sure nothing happens to you. I don't ever want to watch you die again. It nearly killed me the first time."

Vincent could see that speaking about these feelings was difficult for her, so he took hold of her other hand and said, "It's all right. I understand."

Feeling his hands grasping hers was nearly as breathtaking as the kiss they had shared. Simply having him next to her brought her more joy than he could possibly imagine.

Then she remembered their deal, and she said, "Okay. Now you have to answer my question."

"Very well."

Red attacked her face again and she mumbled, "What is it you feel about...me?"

He had known the question would arise sooner or later. After all, he had kissed her. However, he had not prepared a response, and he was struggling with what to say. Less what to say and more how to say it. He had never been good with putting his feelings into words.

Still he made his best attempt and said, "I won't insult you by saying I love you. We both know that's not possible. Not yet. But I will say this. I do care about you, and I admire you. You're unique to all of the people I have met in my life. And what's best is you can look at me and know what it is I need.

"None of my other friends would have done what you just did with my coffin. They would have been too afraid of my reaction, but you knew ahead of time how I would react didn't you?"

Rei smiled and replied, "I knew it would make you happy, but I wasn't expecting you to kiss me. I guess that's a good thing, though. If I could predict everything you were going to do there wouldn't be room for surprises."

"No I supposed there wouldn't."

They sat silent for a few seconds, simply looking into each others eyes, one waiting for the other to speak. However, keeping the silence wouldn't have bothered them either. Lost in their gazes, the world seemed to stop.

"Rei. I know that admiration is an odd thing to base a relationship on, but..."

"I get it. You want to test the ground. You want to see if we can be together and whether or not we can make something bigger out of what we have."

She continued to confirm his assumptions by finishing his sentences, "Yes. If that's what you want as well."

"You shouldn't even need to ask."

Deciding to once again return the favor, Rei reached her hands up to Vincent's face. She lowered his face towards hers and closed the small gap between them. His kiss had been spontaneous and messy due to his impulsive reaction. Hers, however, was softer and seemed to glide across his lips like a cloud. He reached his hands around and entangled his fingers in her white locks.

Somewhat painfully, Rei released his lips and leaned herself against him. Her head rested against his chest and her arms wrapped tightly around his waist.

"I'm kidnaping you for tonight," she said jokingly.

"Can you call it kidnaping if the person willingly stays with you?"

Vincent stood from the bed, taking her with him. She was like a child who had just received a new teddy bear. She did not want to let go.

"You need to get some sleep."

Rei did not release him, "You mean 'we'. I told you. I'm kidnaping you."

"Rei."

"If you don't want to stay in here all night it's okay. But can you at least stay until I fall asleep? I don't want to be away from you right now. I want to make sure this isn't just a really good dream."

He could see she was serious. It wasn't such a far fetched idea for her to think it all may have been a dream. It all happened very suddenly after all.

"All right. I'll stay."

When she woke up the next morning and found Vincent still next to her, the full reality of the previous night set in. When she'd fallen asleep she had expected to wake up to a cold bed with nothing but the picture looking back at her. Happily she was wrong.

Vincent had told her that he didn't sleep much, so she was surprised to find him laying next to her completely asleep. Trying not to wake him, she slowly raised herself up in the bed. The blankets fell from her chest and she placed her feet on the floor. As soon as her weight shifted, Vincents eyes popped open.

Chastising herself, she said, "Sorry. I tried not to wake you."

Vincent shook his head, "It's all right."

Trying to make conversation, Rei inquired, "I'm surprised you were able to sleep."

Vincent grinned slightly, "I'm not. That was the first peaceful night I've had in years. How could I not sleep?"

Rei felt red once again attack her face at his statement. She knew what he mean without him saying it. She'd felt the same sort of peace the night before.

"I know what you mean. I didn't have a nightmare last night."

Hearing her mention the nightmare made Vincent remember something he had meant to say the night before, but he'd forgotten due to his sudden bewitchment.

"Do you want to know the main reason I appreciated the gift so much?"

Rei did not speak and simply nodded her head.

"The main reason wasn't because it freed me of the past. That is a very big reason but not the main one. The main reason is because you risked returning to a place you despise in order to bring me the gift. I know walking into Shinra Manor must have been a terrible experience, especially if you went in alone."

"I did."

"That makes the gift even more appreciated. I meant to say that yesterday."

The red had not left Rei's face and she replied, "After the gift you gave me how could I have done any less?"

Vincent wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her against him. She was content to lean her head against his chest once more, taking in the sound of his heart beat.

"Vincent, I-"

A shriek from downstairs interrupted Rei's sentence. Rei recognized the voice as Tifa's and she quickly leapt from the bed. Vincent was not far behind her and they both took off downstairs. When they reached the bar they were both halted in their tracks.

There sat a brown-haired boy on the floor of the bar with a black liquid dripping from his head. Cloud stood behind him with a look of confusion on his face. Rei looked upon the boy and an eerie sense of familiarity creeped through her body.

"Cloud, what's going on?" Rei asked.

Cloud crossed his arms nervously and replied, "I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to worry, but since Meteorfall, there has been a disease infecting the people of Midgar. They call it Geostigma."

*Short I know, but I'm starting to get my writers block back. Hopefully it is only temporary. Reviews!*


	18. Chapter 18: Christmas Special

Christmas Special

*One of my friends suggested that I add this into the fan fic as a kind of joke. Not actually part of the story. Just something fun for the holidays. I hope you enjoy it. Merry early Christmas.*

Yuffie came busting through the door of the Seventh Heaven, her face was bright with happiness. Tifa, being the one working at the bar, was the first to notice her.

"Hey Yuffie," she said, "What are you so excited about?"

Yuffie held out her hand towards Tifa as Cloud, Rei, and Vincent descended the stairs. She opened her hand and in it was a green materia with a slight red tint to it. The three friends noticed the strange colored materia. Rei was instantly interested due to her love for magic.

"What kind of materia is that Yuffie?" Rei asked.

Yuffie's smile had not lightened a bit, "I don't know. An old man up in the mountains gave it to me. He said he found it in the snow outside, and he didn't want it anymore. I was more than happy to take it, of course."

Rei's eyes would not leave the materia. The odd color and the mysterious way it was found intrigued Rei immensely.

Yuffie could see the envy in her eyes and said, "Here, Rei. You can take it outside and try it out if you want."

Rei became like a child at Christmas (no pun intended) with a brand new toy. She took the materia and took off out of the back door of the Seventh Heaven. The large opening in the back yard was ideal for the testing of the materia.

The rest of her friends followed her outside, and Vincent asked, "Can you tell what kind of materia it is?"

Rei continued to examine the materia and, in slight confusion, replied, "I can't be sure because of the strange color combination. It's green like a healing materia, but it has a hint of red like a summon materia. It could be either one for all I know."

All of her friends were as curious about the materia as she was, so they all backed off and waited for her to activate it.

Not knowing what name to call out, she simply commanded, "Activate."

The materia instantly glowed in a seizure-inducing flash of red and green. Everyone, including Rei, had to close their eyes and turn their faces away from the blinding flashes. The lights continued flickering for many moments before they finally died down. When Rei opened her eyes back up, she was met with an unexpected and humorous sight.

At he feet, wearing a biker bandana, black leather pants and vest, and black boots was a three foot tall, brown-skinned, cookie-like man. His eyebrows ran together and his mouth was curved into a seemingly inexorable frown. He held up on of his fingerless arms and pointed it towards Cloud.

"You," the man said, "Pretty boy."

Before anyone could blink, the little man leapt towards Cloud. His toeless legs landed on Clouds shoulders and he began to hit Cloud over the top of his head. Everyone looked on in surprise and uncertainty as Cloud's head was pounded again and again.

As soon as Cloud somewhat overcame the shock of a gingerbread man attacking his face, he took hold of the little man's "shoulders". He threw the man to the ground and drew his sword from the sheath on his back (because Cloud always conveniently has his sword). Angered by the attack, Cloud did not hesitate to slice the gingerbread man to pieces.

Even though he was now cut into pieces smaller than a softball, the gingerbread man continued to shout, "Pretty boy! Pretty boy!"

Completely dumbfounded, no one knew quite what to do with the pieces of the gingerbread man. Rei knew she had to tend to Cloud, however, and set to healing his bruised head immediately.

They were both distracted, so it took Yuffie shouting "Hey look!" for them to notice little, two-foot-tall men with gray beards running towards their feet. They were all adorned in green shirts with brown pants. Their black shoes jingled as they ran. The ever so slightly taller of the men with the longest beard approached the gingerbread man first.

"Okay guys," he said, "Let's get Gingerhyde out of here. His transformation into Gingerjeckle has clearly failed. Sorry for the inconvenience folks. We'll get him out of your hair. If you would just give us the materia we will make sure this never happens again."

Once again, everyone was speechless. None of them could figure out a way to argue that they should keep the materia, so Rei simply handed over the multicolored stone.

The little man took it and he replied, "Thank you. Okay boys. Let's get to work."

Everyone continued to look on in utter flabbergast as the little men in the green suits carried away the pieces of Gingerhyde.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

*I am really sorry for the ridiculously long wait on this chapter. On top of college, the holidays, and writers block writing has been difficult. Because of all of the distractions this chapter may not be up to snuff with the previous chapters. I appologize for that. Hope you enjoy it even with its flaws.*

As Rei looked upon the crying boy on the floor, the feeling of familiarity would not leave her. She couldn't quite place what felt so familiar, but she knew it scared her. The boy was obviously in pain, and though she wanted to help, she wasn't sure if she could bear being any closer to him.

"V-Vincent. Do you know what this is?" she asked.

Vincent nodded, "Alien matter. It's infected the boy's body."

Rei's eyes widened, "Alien matter? You mean Jenova?"

"Most likely."

She could only assume that was one of the reasons the boy's condition seemed familiar, but she could sense something else as well. Something was stirring in the background, and she could feel it.

"Sensei. Do you think you can try to heal this?" Cloud wondered, "We haven't heard of a cure as of yet, but you're the best medic I know."

The thought of moving closer to the boy terrified her, but still she couldn't say no. Her hand took on its green glow, and she approached the boy. He was obviously scared, and when she approached he shivered. She reached her hand out towards the blackness on his forehead. As soon as her hand came within inches of connecting with his skin, she pulled away swiftly.

Cloud looked upon her in confusion and said, "Sensei? What happened?"

Rei stared at the blackness on the boy's forehead for many seconds before replying, "I can't help him. As soon as my hand went near him, I saw the black start to spread."

"Spread? Why?"

"Isn't it obvious, Cloud? If it's Jenova that has infected him, being near me is only going to make it worse. I'm infested with more Jenova cells than anyone in the world."

Her words struck fear into the boy, and he quickly moved away from her into the protective arms of Tifa.

"It's okay, Denzel. Rei isn't going to hurt you," Tifa told him.

Understandably, Denzel did not wish to be near Rei. After hearing that she could potentially make his sickness worse, he shied away from her. Rei couldn't deny she was hurt, but she knew he was only trying to protect himself.

* * *

><p>After finding out about the Geostigma, Rei rarely left the bar. She stayed away from Denzel and tried to help out as much as she could with the other children. However, even they did not fully trust her. They had all heard about how she almost made Denzel sicker. In their minds she was a walking disease. She didn't let anyone besides Vincent know how much it bothered her.<p>

The eerie familiarity, and the feeling something horrible was about to happen only heightened Rei's anxiety. Vincent tried to reassure her that aside from the Geostigma she had nothing to worry about, but no amount of attempted persuasion would change her mind.

Vincent would soon come to find that he had been wrong.

Other than the occasional outburst from a few of the children, the following few weeks had been relatively calm. However, one day while Rei was helping Tifa around the bar, a sudden wave of pain rushed through her head. She dropped the glass cups she'd been carrying and collapsed onto her knees. Tifa rushed instantly towards her.

"Rei! Rei! Are you all right!"

She didn't answer. All she did was clutch her head and whimper quietly.

Not knowing what to do, Tifa shouted, "Vincent! Vincent get down here now!"

Vincent had never been hard of hearing, so he bolted downstairs at Tifa's call, not expecting the sight before him. His instincts kicked in as soon as he saw the state of Rei.

"Rei," he said frantically.

He wasted no time in rushing to her side.

"Tifa what's going on?"

Rei's strange behavior had left Tifa in a frantic state, but still she replied, "I-I don't know. She just c-collapsed."

Vincent took a tight hold of Rei's shoulders and said, "Rei! Rei what's going on!"

His fears were only heightened when her eyes began to glow green along with the Jenova pieces.

"Rei!"

Her previous shivering at the pain in her head ceased, and she remained perfectly still for many moments. Talking to her did not seem to be working, but Vincent was at a loss. She'd never acted in such a way before.

"No." he heard her whisper, "No."

The shivering continued once again, and the glowing stopped. Unexpectedly, she fell against Vincent and took a tight hold of him. She buried her face into the crook of his neck and began to whimper.

"Rei, what happened? What's going on?"

It took several seconds before she was finally able to form words. Vincent had no idea what had happened, but it had clearly terrified her.

When she was finally able to speak she choked, "Th-There were three...men. They came out...of the ground. Silver hair, green eyes. They were calling out to me. Their presence. Sephiroth."

As soon as "Sephiroth" left her lips, Vincent tensed up. After hearing everything that Sephiroth had done in the past, Vincent despised even the sound of the former Soldier's name.

"I don't understand what you're telling me. What about Sephiroth?"

However, his question fell on deaf ears as he realized she had lost consciousness. He patiently slipped his arm under her legs and lifted her up from the floor. He turned towards Cloud who had since rushed into the room.

"I don't know what's going on, but I'm not leaving her side until she wakes up. If what she said about these "three men" is true, they may try to come after her. Keep your guard up, Cloud."

In too much shock to speak, Cloud simply nodded and Vincent walked past him up the stairs.

Cloud turned to Tifa and said, "Come on, Tifa. Let's get the children out of here for a while. I'm sure after that spectacle they'd like to get out of the bar for a while."

* * *

><p>The three faces haunted her dreams. Every time she would see them dread attacked her. The familiarity of their faces, their eyes, their hair, their presence. All of it sent her into a spiral of fear and confusion.<p>

When she finally opened her eyes, she was gratefully met with Vincent's kind eyes.

"Rei. How are you feeling?"

The dreams still lingered in her mind, so it took her a few moments before she was able to say, "Not good."

"What's happening? I've never seen you behave in such a way."

She shook her head, "I'm not too sure myself. I felt a sudden pain in my chest and then I collapsed. Before I could even take the time to react to the pain, my vision blurred. When I was finally able to see again I saw the men."

"Men?"

"Yeah. There were three of them. They all had silver hair and green eyes, just like Sephiroth. They weren't saying my name, but I could sense that they were calling out to me. I don't know what they want, but if they have anything to do with Sephiroth it can't be good."

The mention of Sephiroth's name was enough to drive Vincent to murder. If the three men were truly in league with Sephiroth he would see them all dead before he would let them near Rei.

"They will not get to you. This I promise."

"Really now?" came a voice from behind Vincent.

The voice shocked Vincent and he turned towards it. He was met with the silver hair and green eyes Rei had mentioned. The man was tall and slender. His silver hair matched the length of Vincent's.

"It looks like we made it to her. Now release Mother this instant."

Rei's eyes filled with confusion at the man's words, 'Mother?'

Vincent's glare did not leave the man as he reached into his leg holster for the Cerberus, "I don't know who you are, but you are not laying a hand on Rei. Leave now, or I will make you leave."

The man grinned and reached behind his back, "You will try."

A shadow from the window, visible only by Rei, appeared. Just as Vincent was drawing his gun, a figure broke through the glass next to him.

'It was a trick!' Rei thought.

A much bigger man stood behind Vincent with a strange, metal arm-weapon pointed at Vincent's back. With a gun at his face and a second weapon at his back, Vincent knew he was stuck.

"No!" Rei shouted.

The two men flinched at her words, but they did not lower their weapons.

"Say nighty night," the bigger man taunted.

"Wait!" Rei shouted once again.

This time, the two men looked towards her, still keeping their weapons trained on Vincent. Knowing that they were alone in the house, Vincent felt completely helpless against the two men.

"Don't hurt him, please! If all you want is me then fine! I'll go with you."

"Rei!" Vincent exclaimed.

"Please! I'll go with you if you'll just let him go!"

The larger man kept his weapon on Vincent while the slender one approached Rei. He reached his hand out to her and touched her left cheek.

"Come, Mother. Let us leave this foolish rabble."

He waved his hand in front of her face, and she knew no more.

* * *

><p>As he raced through the streets of Midgar in search of his friends, Vincent cursed himself again and again. Right after promising her that the men would not find her he had let them take her from him. Not knowing their intentions, he was not prepared to waste any time in getting her back.<p>

When he finally glimpsed Cloud and Tifa in the rebuilt Midgar Park, he rushed to them.

"Cloud!" he exclaimed.

* * *

><p>When she opened her eyes again, her immediate surroundings were completely unfamiliar. On all sides she saw rock and metal. The only thing around her that wasn't stone was the small mat she'd been placed on. Behind her, she saw the remains of the building in which she spent many years of her life: The Shinra Building. Three painfully familiar faces also waited around her. She noticed her two kidnapers first. However, behind them was the third face she'd seen in the vision. With medium length hair and green, menacing eyes, he looked the most dangerous of the three. He was the first to approach her.<p>

She knew trying to avoid him would be pointless, so she stood her ground.

He stood only two feet away from her when he said, "Mother. We've found you."

She shivered at being called 'mother'. Only one person had ever called her that.

"Wh-Who are you?" she asked hesitantly.

She could have sworn she saw hurt in his eyes when he answered, "Ah. Of course. You wouldn't know us. Not in this human form."

His words only confused her more and she said, "Human form? What are you talking about?"

The three men all exchanged concerned looks before the leader said, "You really don't remember anything, do you?"

The more he spoke, the more frightened and confused she became, "I don't understand what you mean. You wanted me here so badly, but now all you're doing is spouting nonsense. Tell me what you want."

Once again, the young man looked hurt. Had he not been his kidnaper she might have felt sorry for him.

"Okay, Mother. Since this human form has diluted your mind I will tell you."

She wished he would stop calling her 'Mother'. It was absolutely unbearable, especially with his uncanny resemblance to Sephiroth.

"We are here to help you achieve your ultimate goal. We know of your wishes for this planet, and by using our powers we can help you. Our only reasons for existence are to protect you and to bring about the return of your son, Sephiroth."

Without a seconds hesitation, Rei exclaimed, "No!"

The man, shocked by her reaction, said, "Mother?"

She didn't want to upset her kidnapers, so she calmed herself and asked, "What's your name?"

Her kidnaper continued to show very human qualities when he blushed slightly at her question. He turned towards his companions and signaled for them to move closer.

"My name is Kadaj. The big lug behind me is Loz, and the thin one is Yazoo."

Her fear of the three men was receding the longer she talked with them. They didn't appear to want to hurt her. In fact, they seemed to revere her.

"Okay, Kadaj. I need you to listen to me. You can't bring Sephiroth back."

His eyes widened and he said, "I don't understand, Mother. He's your son."

Tears began to form in her eyes and she replied, "I know...I know he's my son. I miss him more than you could ever know, but you don't understand what he'll do if you bring him back."

The story Cloud told her of him calling down Meteor and nearly destroying the planet was ample enough reason to scare her, but she had to admit she had her own slightly selfish reasons for not wishing him to return. If the events that occurred at Shinra Manor that night were to repeat themselves, she didn't know if she'd be able to handle it.

"But I do understand. He'll fulfill your wishes, Mother. Everything is as it should be."

Rei shook her head, "I'm not Jenova."

"Of course not. You're her vessel. And as her vessel, her desires are your desires."

She continued to shake her head, "No. You're wrong. I have absolutely no desire to alter this planet."

Kadaj's eyes widened, "How can you say that? Jenova lives on in you. You must know what that means. You are meant to carry on what she started. Just as we are meant to ensure it happens."

She could see that trying to explain around what Sephiroth did wouldn't work. She would have to gather her courage and explain the situation directly.

* * *

><p>"When did this happen, Vincent?" Cloud asked as he ran next to his friend back to the bar. The two of them needed to gather supplies before they could venture out to search for Rei.<p>

"Twenty minutes ago."

"What did these men look like?"

"Silver hair, green eyes. One was slender with a calm voice. The other was large with a scratchy voice. That's all I can say for sure."

Cloud wasn't pleased with the minimal information he was given, but he would take anything he could get at that point, "Okay. We need to hurry. There's no telling what they plan to do to her."

Though the thought of defending the kidnapers disgusted him, Vincent replied, "I don't think they want to hurt her. When they took her, I didn't sense any malicious intentions. I don't believe Rei did either. Otherwise, she may not have elected to go with them so easily."

Cloud grinned slightly, "They had weapons pointed at you. She would have gone with them if Sephiroth had been standing there."

Vincent's eyes fell to the ground, "I suppose you're right. Whatever the case, we have no idea where to even begin looking. They could have taken her anywhere."

Cloud shook his head, "That's not necessarily the case. If these men truly are involved with Sephiroth, then chances are they will go somewhere Sephiroth is familiar with. Now let's think. What is the most likely place?"

Vincent's eyes had not left the ground, but he still answered, "The Northern Crater?"

Cloud shook his head again, "Possible, but not likely. He was only there for the last few days of his life."

Vincent shuttered at the thought, but his next guess was, "Shinra Manor?"

The possibility had crossed Cloud's mind, but for the sake of his own sanity he said, "I'd rather explore other options first."

The two of them arrived at the bar and rushed inside. They raided through Tifa's medicine cabinet and gathered a few potions to bring with them. Cloud brought his newest sword out of the closet. After they had gathered all of the necessities, it was as if a light tripped in both of their heads.

"Shinra Building," they said simultaneously.

* * *

><p>"I don't understand, Mother. Sephiroth is your son. How can you honestly believe he would do that to you?"<p>

Even with the full explanation of the events at Shinra Manor, Kadaj still was not convinced. Even though Rei explained completely what would happen if Sephiroth were to be revived, the youth was still under a false sense of obligation and hope.

"Kadaj, please. You have to believe me. If you revive Sephiroth, what happened at Shinra Manor all of those years ago will happen again."

Kadaj threw his arms down to his sides and suddenly exclaimed, "I will hear no more of this! The humans have corrupted your mind and now you speak nonsense! Yazoo! Loz! Hold her down so her human side won't fight us! It is time we put an end to all of this nonsense!"

Before she could utter a word in response, Loz and Yazoo rushed to her sides. Loz took hold of one of her arms while Yazoo held the other. As soon as he was sure she was restrained, Kadaj reached out towards her neck.

"Kadaj! Please don't!" Rei pleaded.

When she realized no amount of pleading would sway him, Rei knew she had to try to stop him. Attempting to make Loz and Yazoo release her, she summoned her fire onto her arms. However, no sooner had she conjured the spell did Yazoo whisper the word Rei dreaded the most.

"Osmose."

Just as it had many times before, the spell drained her of all of her strength, making her an easy target for Kadaj and the soon to be revived Sephiroth. Kadaj's gloved hand reached her neck and began to glow green. An excruciating pain shot through all of the nerves and muscles in Rei's neck. Kadaj took a firm hold of the Jenova piece embedded in her neck and pulled it away sharply. Naturally, without her magic, the wound stayed open and proceeded to bleed profusely.

"Loz. Heal her," Kadaj ordered.

She almost wanted to tell them to let her die, but she couldn't. Just like the last time she'd felt like dying, she remembered there were still reasons for her to live. So even as Kadaj pressed the Jenova piece into his chest, she stood her ground. Even as the form of the teenager vanished and was replaced with that of her eldest son, she did not falter. Even as Sephiroth's hungry eyes fell on her, she didn't give into the urge to die. Though she had to admit being knocked out wouldn't have been unwelcome. Especially when Sephiroth finally began to speak.

"It seems our seed prospered while I was locked away. Two offspring formed from us. Isn't it a miracle?"

Rei's stomach turned as she realized that Sephiroth thought Loz and Yazoo were their children.

Rei shook her head at him and said, "I've told you your whole life that I can't have children. You've always known that. For you to think you impregnated me is complete nonsense."

Sephiroth grinned, "And yet here they stand. Proof that Mother's legacy is meant to carry on."

"No, Sephiroth! You created them by yourself! I had nothing to do with it!"

She couldn't be 100% sure that Sephiroth had created the three teenagers she'd met, but that was the best explanation she could think of.

"You're wrong. Our seeds bonded and created these children of Jenova. Now we will create more. Mother's legacy must spread."

The same look of lust and desire appeared on Sephiroth's face as she'd seen all of those years ago. Tears formed in her eyes and she shook her head wildly.

"No," she mumbled.

*I'll apologize once again for this chapter if it's terrible. The next one will be much better I promise.*


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

As Sephiroth began to move toward her, Rei's whole body shook. Her thighs pushed together tightly and her breathing quickened. She knew that without her magic she had no hope of defending herself, so her only option was to cooperate. She was not, however, prepared to accept that option.

Even as he reached his arms out and pressed her back to the ground, she struggled. Her legs kicked ferociously, her arms flailed, and she continually raised her back from the ground.

"Stop this, Sephiroth!" she shouted.

Anger filled his voice when he said, "Why do you struggle? You seemed to have no problem the last time."

"I was in shock!" she yelled back, "Now let me go!"

She didn't know why she was demanding for him to release her when she knew he wouldn't listen. He pressed his knee against her left thigh and pried her legs apart, making sure to block them with his own legs. With her legs restrained, she lost another method of resistance, which increased her heart rate tremendously.

"Sephiroth! Please, don't do this!"

He ignored her pleads and grasped the zipper on her jump suit. He pulled it down quickly, not wishing to waste any time. With the exposure of her body, she struggled harder than ever. She tried to push her legs together, flailed her arms, and tried to bite his hands.

Becoming annoyed by her persistence, Sephiroth reared his hand back and brought it down across her head, knocking her almost unconscious. Her vision blurred and her head throbbed. All strength in her arms and legs disappeared, and she was unable to fight anymore. She was, however, able to feel him slide her jump suit down off of her arms, but she could do nothing to hinder him. Accepting her fate, Rei closed her eyes and tried to mentally prepare herself. However, when she didn't feel any pressure between her legs, she knew something had happened.

A loud "bang" caused her to open her eyes, and when she looked up at Sephiroth, she saw blood dripping from his chest.

"Sephiroth?" she said.

"You bastard!" Sephiroth shouted as he drew his sword.

Before Rei was able to register what had happened, Sephiroth rushed away from her, and she heard the clashing of swords. She attempted to sit up, but her head was in far too much pain to allow much movement. So when she felt pressure on each of her arms, she was unable to react much beyond a confused look. However, when she was met with the red eyes that had so bewitched her for her whole life, her heart soared.

"Vincent," she mumbled.

He quickly returned her jump suit to its original position and zipped it back up before capturing her tightly in his arms.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

She smiled brightly and answered, "Yes. Thank you. I don't think I could've handled it a...second time."

Vincent clenched his fist, "No one will ever disgrace you in such a way again. I promise you that."

She believed him. In Vincent's arms, Rei felt safe enough to let herself drift into unconsciousness.

She opened her eyes to find herself still in the ruins of Midgar with Vincent looking down upon her. Behind him stood Cloud. To her right were Yazoo and Loz.

"Mother," Yazoo said quietly, "We're...sorry. We should have listened to you."

Loz didn't say anything, but Rei could see tears in his eyes. Missing from the scene was Kadaj, whom she could only guess was dead. However, when she sat up, she found she was very wrong. From behind Yazoo and Loz, Kadaj limped up to her and fell against her. He buried his face in her stomach and sobbed.

"Mother," he choked, "I'm so sorry, Mother. I saw...I saw what he was doing, but I couldn't stop him. I tried to. I tried."

Rei smiled tenderly and placed a hand on the back of his head. Blaming Kadaj for Sephiroth's actions was something Rei would never even dream of doing. She stroked his hair gently and said, "It's okay, Kadaj. It's okay."

He shook his head, "No it's not. I almost...we almost..."

"But it didn't happen," Rei said, "You couldn't know for sure what Sephiroth was going to do until you released him. I don't blame you."

She could feel Kadaj's tears soaking through her jump suit, and she pulled the teenager up into her arms. His presence brought back Sephiroth's teenage years when he was rebellious, but still needed her.

"It'll be okay, Kadaj," she said gently, "Don't worry."

However, when Kadaj's body began to glow green, she found she was wrong. The fight with Cloud had proven too much for him.

"Kadaj!" she exclaimed.

"You can't save him," came a soft voice from in front of Rei.

She raised her head and a familiar face she'd seen only in pictures looked back. Brown hair, red ribbon, pink dress, and bright green eyes told the story of her identity.

"Aerith," Rei said quietly.

"Yes," Aerith answered.

Cloud and Vincent both stood silent, unable to think of words to say to their deceased friend.

"You have to let Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz go," Aerith said.

Rei looked back down at the dying Kadaj and mumbled, "Why?"

Aerith approached Rei and knelt down in front of her, "I understand your desire to keep them here. They remind you of how Sephiroth used to be, but...they don't belong in this world. They'll be much happier in mine."

Aerith stood from the ground and raised her hands up to the air. Just as her fingertips outstretched, rain began trickling down from the clouds. As soon as the rain touched Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz, their bodies began to glow a brighter green.

"Kadaj, Yazoo, Loz. Would you like to come with me?" Aerith asked.

All three of the teenagers gaped at Aerith, mesmerized by the comfortable aura she was giving off. Before Rei was even able to say goodbye, the three teenagers' bodies dissipated, floating away in the green of the lifestream. Rei hung her head, trying her hardest to hold back her tears.

"Come on, Sensei, stop beating yourself up," came a familiar cocky voice.

She turned toward the voice and was met with a glorious sight. Standing next to Aerith were two people she thought she'd never see again.

"Zack, Angeal," she whispered.

Zack smiled and waved while Angeal stood idle.

"Sensei," Zack said, "You've been torturing yourself since mine and Angeal's deaths."

Angeal crossed his arms and said, "We want you to stop."

Rei gave them a confused look, "What do you mean, "stop"?"

Zack grinned slyly, "We're saying we want you to stop blaming yourself for our deaths. Yeah, we know you're always going to miss us, but blaming yourself and taking on so much guilt isn't good for you. My death wasn't your fault."

Angeal nodded, "And my death was of my own doing."

Zack walked closer to Rei and said, "We want you to be happy, Sensei. You can't be happy if you keep tearing yourself down with guilt. You finally found the guy you've been holding out for, and you have a new life ahead of you. Don't waste a second of that life dwelling on something you can't change."

Rei's eyes were streaming tears by this point. On top of being able to talk to her students again, she felt every burden she'd carried through the years lift from her. She smiled happily at her students.

"Thank you Zack, Angeal," she whispered.

Zack smirked and answered, "No problem. Now get up off the ground and start living."

Rei chuckled lightly and pushed herself up from the dirty ground. She held onto Vincent's arm to steady herself.

"Where's Genesis?" Rei asked, "I don't see him here."

Zack's smile vanished, and he glanced back at Angeal. Angeal nodded, and Zack turned back to Rei.

"Genesis isn't dead, Sensei," Zack said.

Rei's eyes widened, and she almost lost her footing. Luckily Vincent anticipated her reaction and was able to hold her up.

"S-Still alive?" Rei mumbled, "Genesis is still alive?"

Zack smiled, "Yeah, so I guess that means you have some searching to do."

Rei smiled back, "I guess I do."

Zack glanced back at Aerith and said, "Well Sensei, we have to go. Us dead people have dead people things to do."

Though it pained her to watch them leave, she knew she couldn't stop them and answered, "Zack, Angeal...I love you."

Zack's smile grew longer, and Angeal gave a slight grin before they both faded away along with Aerith.

With her students gone, Rei clung onto Vincent and allowed herself to cry.

*Six months later*

As soon as Rei had recovered from the incident with Sephiroth, she insisted that she wanted to look for Genesis. Vincent, of course, tried to stop her, trying to make her understand that without even the slightest clue that it would be impossible to find him. Still she persisted until he finally gave in and agreed to travel with her to search for him. They traveled to Wutai, Bone Village, Kalm, The Gold Saucer, Nibelheim, and Costa de Sol before finally heading back to Midgar.

When the two of them stepped through the doors of the Seventh Heaven, Cloud and Tifa could tell immediately their search had been fruitless. Rei's head hung, and her eyes held a familiar look of defeat and disappointment.

Tifa was the first to ask, "Not even a clue?"

Rei raised her head and answered, "No. We showed his picture to everyone we could get to talk to us. No one has seen him recently. A few people from Nibelheim and Costa de Sol remembered seeing him many years ago, but..."

Vincent took hold of one of her hands and squeezed it tightly, "You didn't have anything to go on besides the fact that he still lives. You can't blame yourself for not being able to find him."

Rei half chuckled and said, "I can blame myself all day. It's just not going to do me any good."

She shook her hand free from Vincent's and headed past Cloud. She walked up the stairs to hers and Vincent's bedroom and closed the door tightly. Deciding following her would do no good, Vincent remained downstairs with Cloud and Tifa. He sat at one of the bar stools and hung his head.

"She was so happy," Vincent said, "when she found out that Genesis is still alive. But...with each place we visited, I could see her resolve fading. Every door closed in our faces, every head shake knocked her down more and more. Now I...don't know what to do."

Tifa turned toward the back of the bar and took a bottle of scotch off of the counter. She filled him a glass and slid it over to him.

"There's nothing you can do, Vincent," Tifa said, "She just has to accept that, even though Genesis is alive, she may never see him again. That won't be an easy thing for her to accept, though. So, the best thing you can do is be there for her. She may act cold and distant, but she really will want your help."

Vincent took a drink of the scotch and asked, "What makes you so sure."

Tifa grinned. "I'm a woman. I know how women think."

Vincent chuckled lightly before finishing the scotch. "Rei is hardly a normal woman."

Tifa took the empty glass from him. "Go upstairs with her. You don't even have to say anything. I promise that just you being there will make her feel better."


	21. Author's Note

Hello, everyone.

I haven't "given up" on this story. I just posted the only chapter I've been able to put together over the last couple of years and, for now, that's all there is.

I do know that Genesis is alive and I want to have Rei go look for him, but until Square puts out a legitimate Final Fantasy 7 sequel and I know what's actually going on with him, I can't really add to the Genesis story. I don't want to do anything that's going to be majorly against canon because I don't believe in doing that. And I'm not gonna know what I can and can't do unless a sequel is made involving Genesis. I know some of you are probably expecting sexy time with Vincent and Rei but that's not going to happen. I don't want them having sex because I just don't think they would. Rei has no desire to do so and Vincent wouldn't ask her to.

So, as much as many of you want this thing to continue, I can't do it unless I have more information about Genesis. I also have not had any real time to put toward this thing because I have been in college getting a degree in psychology, working two jobs, and managing a bunch of clubs as well. I appreciate so many of you trying to encourage me to write and I'm delighted that you like this story so much, but this is as far as I go until a sequel is made.

Cheers,

Yusuke-Uchiha


End file.
